Those Coyote Girls

Chapter 14 - Rose

In what felt like no time at all, I was interviewing for a startup company in Maryland that made educational apps and programs. I scheduled my first interview so that it was the day after Ellie and I returned to Baltimore.

The interview itself was surprisingly comfortable. I never had much faith in my ability to interview before. I just didn't like bragging about myself, which is exactly what you have to do. I wore a skirt, a top, and a blazer that looked fantastic on me as long as they were adjusted just so- a huge source of stress, since it left me constantly paranoid that my shirt would have come untucked or that it was hanging askew. My hair was carefully pinned up so that it looked professional but somehow soft, feminine. It wasn't the kind of style I was capable of creating. No, I had Ellie to thank for this small masterpiece. I carried with me a briefcase that held my laptop. The best way to tell them about projects I'd worked on was to show them. I also had a couple of games I had developed, thinking that maybe I could talk myself into a job making educational video games. It would be fulfilling, I thought. Much better than what I was doing before, certainly.

"We'll call you by Monday afternoon," Mr. Hartford assured me, shaking my hand and grinning. I felt really good about how this had gone. Surely he wouldn't be so cheerful if he didn't want to hire me?

It was Friday afternoon now. I understood that they probably were shut down for the weekend. Getting an answer by Monday almost felt too soon, though I was glad that this wouldn't get dragged out longer.

I hated being unemployed.

I had enough in my savings to keep me solvent for the next year at least, but the last thing I wanted to do was blow through all of my savings. No, better to find a job- quickly.

Besides, what else did I have to do with my time?

I decided to go to a café Ellie had told me about. The interview had given me an idea for a math game involving frogs. It would help people learn combinations and probability. You could calculate the number of distinct paths from one side of a pond to another, assuming the frog was hopping from one lilypad to the next. I could also throw in the the probability that he would miss the lilypad. It would be a simple enough game to make.

I sat down with a chai latte and started working on the basic design. I surprised myself by making an alligator first. He would follow the frog and if the frog fell into the pond, the alligator's mouth would appear to swallow the screen.

Was it too morbid? Maybe. But it made me laugh all the same.

I lifted my latte to my nose and inhaled deeply. I loved the smell of chai. I almost dropped the cup when I realized I wasn't the only werecoyote here. I looked wildly around the café; it wasn't too big, so it only took moments for me to isolate the werecoyote.

He was gorgeous. He had golden brown hair that looked like it was sticking up of its own will. His jacket looked like real leather and was worn smooth in patches. His blue eyes burned into mine. He crossed the room in a few short strides, nostrils flared and pupils dilated.

I knew that look.

He was feeling a mating pull toward me. I frowned and inhaled again. Now that I thought about it, his scent was appealing... but it didn't have half the draw I would have expected. "Hello," he said, pulling out the chair across from me and sitting down.

"Hi," I replied. I moved my hand up to tuck hair behind my ear, then realized it was pulled up. There was nothing to tuck. I let my hand fall.

"I haven't seen you around before," he said. His eyes were still fixed on mine. I started to feel short of breath, but it was odd; though I knew we were compatible, that he could take me right now and everything would work out beautifully, I wasn't being pulled toward him.

My mother had told me about this happening. Once you feel the pull of your soul mate, no one else compares.

I choked, though there was nothing in my mouth or throat. Clark. He had ruined me for other men. Would I never be drawn to another in my life? Was I doomed to either be with him or be alone?

And was that really doom?

The man was watching me, expectant and perhaps a little confused. I knew how these things usually went. They weren't generally this drawn out. I should either be all over him or gone already.

"Sorry," I said, sounding winded. "I think..."

He waited impatiently.

"I think I must have... I can't feel you properly," I finally said, shaking my head.

His eyes widened. He leaned in and inhaled again. "But you're unmated," he observed.

"Yes," I agreed. "I should go. I'm sorry." I scrambled to pick up my things. I didn't even shut off my laptop before stuffing it in my bag. It would overheat, I knew, but I couldn't stand being here any longer. I tried taking a sip of my latte, but the heat overwhelmed me and I quickly regretted it.

The man stood too and put a hand on my arm. I tingled where he touched me, but it was a mild thing, almost like being tickled but softer still than that. His muscles strained and I knew he was keeping tight control over himself. The pull toward me must be strong, then. Odd that I could barely feel it.

"I'm sorry," I said again, and wrenched myself away from him. I hurried down the street to my car and slammed it into drive. I didn't want to risk him following me. If the pull was as strong as I suspected, there was a very real possibility he would.

I took a winding path home, even getting lost once or twice. When I was confident he couldn't possibly be on my trail, I pulled over and programmed my GPS to take me back to the apartment Ellie and I now shared.

I found her lounging on her bed. Her hair hung off the side and she had her legs perched on the wall. She looked upside-down. Ellie squealed when I walked in. She threw herself upright and clutched at her head. "Woah, head rush," she said. "How did it go?"

How had she known about the werecoyote man?

Then I realized she meant the interview. "I think I nailed it," I said.

"Then why don't you look happy?" There was a knowing glint in her eye and she looked disgustingly self-satisfied. "Could it be that you're realizing this isn't where you belong?"

I scoffed, though her words were dangerously close to truth. "Can we not talk about Clark at all?" I asked. "Please? I have something to tell you, but I'm only spilling if you promise not to make this about Clark."

Ellie's eyes widened. She grabbed my hand and tugged me on to the bed with her. "I promise! Tell me!"

I walked her through what had happened at the café. "It was so weird, Ells," I finished. "If he hadn't been acting so attracted, I never would have known the pull was there."

Ellie yipped and squirmed in her seat. "How can you possibly expect me not to bring up you-know-who?" she demanded.

"I just... I can't talk about him right now," I said pleadingly.

"If not now, when?" When I didn't answer, she gripped my hands and said, "I'm giving you until Sunday morning to waste time in denial. Then we're going to talk about this. Okay?"

I didn't think I had any choice, so I reluctantly nodded.

Ellie was satisfied. "Good. Now, Henry and Layla invited me to a party tomorrow night on their campus. It's like an hour and a half away and I'm leaving early in the morning so I can spend as much time as possible with them. Please come?"

I shrugged. I really did want to work on this game, and I was still reeling over the realization that what I had with Clark was one-of-a-kind. That I would never feel a strong pull toward another again.

It wasn't easy to assimilate.

"I think I'll hang out here," I decided.

Ellie pouted. "I thought you'd say that. We'll go out to breakfast on Sunday and talk it all out."

But we didn't get to have that talk on Sunday.