world we can't explain. I just thought you had some special sense wolves don't have. But you haven't lied about it."
"Sort of I did," I said. "Tell me, how much better is your wolf nose than your human nose?"
"Quite a bit. Three or four times better."
"And your human nose, how much better is it than my fox nose?"
"I don't know. I've never seen you track by scent or anything like that."
"My fox nose is much better than my human nose, but my fox nose is not as good as your human nose."
"All right."
"How about your hearing, Alpha? Human as compared to wolf."
"The inner ears aren't any better as a wolf, but we gain a lot by having large directional ears."
"My fox ears are only marginally better than my human ears, maybe twice as good, but then only for the same reasons. They are easier to point."
"Right."
"Alpha," I said. "Can you hear my heart beat?" I knew she couldn't. She shook her head. "I can hear yours."
She stared at me without saying anything. "I've tested your hearing. You barely hear better than a human."
"I know you've tested it. And I let you believe what I wanted you to believe. At first, it was when you didn't trust me, and I didn't want to give away any advantages I didn't have to. After that, I didn't want to admit how many conversations I have overheard that I shouldn't have."
She looked at me with dawning horror. "Last night," she said quietly.
"No," I said. "You told me not to eavesdrop. I borrowed Angel's iPod and I played it loudly enough Gia walked right up to me and laid her cold nose against my neck. You can verify with both of them. I am sure Gia would have heard the music; I wasn't faking."
"How good is your hearing?"
"I can easily hear you walking in the woods up to four hundred yards. And you are not a particularly noisy wolf. If you are running, it's closer to a thousand yards. You should assume, unless the conditions are particularly poor, that I can pick out any conversation within a hundred yards and most conversations from much further. The distance is less if the people are being particularly quiet, whispering into each other's ears. And of course, it won't work at a rock concert."
And then I whimpered and rolled over onto my back on the sofa, my head next to her, offering my neck. "I am sorry, Alpha."
Rather than taking my neck, she kissed me and pulled me into her lap.
"I thought you would be angry."
"No. And I don't blame you. I'm glad you told me. I take it there is no such thing as a private conversation around you."
"There are enough walls in this house that I can't always catch the details of the conversations in the kitchen from up here, if people are speaking sufficiently lowly."
She swore. "The walls are soundproofed!"
I looked up. "I know."
"Why are you telling me now?"
"Because tomorrow I will relay to the council the Chicago wolves' plans to challenge our alpha. Oh, and Avery in particular wants a fox hunt."
"He won't get one!" she said firmly, yanking me against her. "Mine!"
"Yes, Lara. Yours. Please don't crush me."
She relaxed, but her heart was pounding. And if I was ever unsure whether she loved me, I was sure then.
"That's why you told me don't go to Chicago."
"Yes. I know you probably have to tell the council how I know all this. I wish I didn't have to tell."
She smiled. "We don't. We only have to tell Vivian and Elisabeth. No one else knows where you were in the room compared to the conversations taking place."
We cuddled quietly for a few minutes.
"Lara. Alpha."
"Yes, little fox?"
"I want four enforcers assigned to me full time until they are out of our territory. Can you spare them?"
"Oh honey, yes, of course."
"Please take care of it now. They may have felt stymied tonight. I think the cash will buy them off for a while, but I'm scared."
"Of course." She rose from the couch, dislodging me, and retrieved her phone, then settled back down, lifting me back into her arms. She dialed. "I need you, my room, immediately."
"Yes, Alpha,"
"Sort of I did," I said. "Tell me, how much better is your wolf nose than your human nose?"
"Quite a bit. Three or four times better."
"And your human nose, how much better is it than my fox nose?"
"I don't know. I've never seen you track by scent or anything like that."
"My fox nose is much better than my human nose, but my fox nose is not as good as your human nose."
"All right."
"How about your hearing, Alpha? Human as compared to wolf."
"The inner ears aren't any better as a wolf, but we gain a lot by having large directional ears."
"My fox ears are only marginally better than my human ears, maybe twice as good, but then only for the same reasons. They are easier to point."
"Right."
"Alpha," I said. "Can you hear my heart beat?" I knew she couldn't. She shook her head. "I can hear yours."
She stared at me without saying anything. "I've tested your hearing. You barely hear better than a human."
"I know you've tested it. And I let you believe what I wanted you to believe. At first, it was when you didn't trust me, and I didn't want to give away any advantages I didn't have to. After that, I didn't want to admit how many conversations I have overheard that I shouldn't have."
She looked at me with dawning horror. "Last night," she said quietly.
"No," I said. "You told me not to eavesdrop. I borrowed Angel's iPod and I played it loudly enough Gia walked right up to me and laid her cold nose against my neck. You can verify with both of them. I am sure Gia would have heard the music; I wasn't faking."
"How good is your hearing?"
"I can easily hear you walking in the woods up to four hundred yards. And you are not a particularly noisy wolf. If you are running, it's closer to a thousand yards. You should assume, unless the conditions are particularly poor, that I can pick out any conversation within a hundred yards and most conversations from much further. The distance is less if the people are being particularly quiet, whispering into each other's ears. And of course, it won't work at a rock concert."
And then I whimpered and rolled over onto my back on the sofa, my head next to her, offering my neck. "I am sorry, Alpha."
Rather than taking my neck, she kissed me and pulled me into her lap.
"I thought you would be angry."
"No. And I don't blame you. I'm glad you told me. I take it there is no such thing as a private conversation around you."
"There are enough walls in this house that I can't always catch the details of the conversations in the kitchen from up here, if people are speaking sufficiently lowly."
She swore. "The walls are soundproofed!"
I looked up. "I know."
"Why are you telling me now?"
"Because tomorrow I will relay to the council the Chicago wolves' plans to challenge our alpha. Oh, and Avery in particular wants a fox hunt."
"He won't get one!" she said firmly, yanking me against her. "Mine!"
"Yes, Lara. Yours. Please don't crush me."
She relaxed, but her heart was pounding. And if I was ever unsure whether she loved me, I was sure then.
"That's why you told me don't go to Chicago."
"Yes. I know you probably have to tell the council how I know all this. I wish I didn't have to tell."
She smiled. "We don't. We only have to tell Vivian and Elisabeth. No one else knows where you were in the room compared to the conversations taking place."
We cuddled quietly for a few minutes.
"Lara. Alpha."
"Yes, little fox?"
"I want four enforcers assigned to me full time until they are out of our territory. Can you spare them?"
"Oh honey, yes, of course."
"Please take care of it now. They may have felt stymied tonight. I think the cash will buy them off for a while, but I'm scared."
"Of course." She rose from the couch, dislodging me, and retrieved her phone, then settled back down, lifting me back into her arms. She dialed. "I need you, my room, immediately."
"Yes, Alpha,"
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