Stone Circle What do you think of my pups?

It was a little nerve-wracking, being touted in front of these strangers and being so unsure whether or not she deserved it. Sure, she was bigger and probably stronger than her father, but not stronger than Ike — and now, she had met wolves bigger than him! And so very few others. Who was she to compare herself to the unknown masses?

Too, the girl was deeply fascinated — almost to distraction! — by the grizzled wolf before her. She’d never met anyone so old, and in fact, had never met a grown male that wasn’t her brother.

So it was perhaps not inevitable, but certainly no surprise that she was overcome by an unexpected fit of shyness. And yet, she wanted badly to impress the man — and she was annoyed with Ike for being so hard to follow up.

“Of course,” she murmured, her white chin dipping toward her tawny chest. “I want you all to be my family.”

For some reason, the words made her face feel hot.