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Sid laughed. "Yeah, I guess you could say that."
Bradley looked at him confused. "What's so funny?"
Sid shook his head and stopped in his tracks. He turned to Bradley with a mixture of amusement and
annoyance. "You really don't get it?"
"What am I supposed to get?" Bradley said, feeling like he was missing something obvious.
Before Sid could answer, a voice called out.
They turned to see three men walking towards them. The one who called out was a short Hispanic
man built like a truck. Next to him were two other men, a dark-haired brunette with an easy, but tired
smile, and a bulky blond with kind eyes. Looking at them, Bradley couldn't help wondering if everyone
in town looked like they benched pressed school buses or if he just happened to meet those types. Of all
the men he had ran into, Sid was the only one who hadn't been bulging with muscles, and he had seen
enough of Sid's naked body to know he was still well-built, very well-built.
"Sid! We missed you last night," the Hispanic man said as he slung an arm around Sid's shoulders.
"We? More like Alejandro couldn't quit whining about his precious Sid not being there," the brunette
said, with a chuckle.
Sid raised his eyebrows. "Oh?"
Alejandro just sidled up closer to Sid. "Can you blame me? All I get to see is Mitch's ugly face. It'll
make anyone cry for a glimpse of real beauty."
Sid laughed and flicked his hair. "Well then, go ahead and drink it in while you have the chance."
Bradley watched the scene play out with a mix of emotions. He could see that these were obviously
friends of Sid's, but it didn't stop the irritation that slid through him at Alejandro hanging all over Sid, or
the way Sid flirted back.
"Hey! Mitch's face isn't so bad," the blond said.
Everyone looked at the blond.
The blond flushed and looked down at his feet.
Alejandro barked out a laugh. "Your crush is showing, Scott."
The blond blushed harder.
Mitch reached out and squeezed Scott's shoulder. "Hey, don't be embarrassed. You just got good
taste."
Alejandro whistled. "Oh, is that how it is?"
Mitch glared at Alejandro. "Shut up."
Alejandro just grinned and then leaned over and rubbed his cheek against Sid's. "See, look at that
face. It's enough to give me nightmares. I need my pretty Sid to make it all better."
Bradley felt a muscle in his jaw twitch and he realized he was clenching his teeth. "Sid, aren't you
going to introduce me?"
Sid turned to Bradley with a smile and playfully pushed Alejandro away. He sauntered over to
Bradley, hooking Brad's arm with his. "Everyone, this is Bradley. Bradley, this is Alejandro," -he pointed
to the man he had been snuggling up with just a moment ago- "Mitch and Scott." He pointed to the
brunette and then the blond.
Bradley unhooked his arm with Sid's and instead wrapped his arm around Sid's waist, pulling him
close, before giving a toothy smile to the men. "Nice to meet you."
Mitch raised an eyebrow and Scott's eyes widened.
Alejandro just started to laugh. "Possessive, isn't he?"
Sid elbowed Bradley.
Bradley didn't let go. He just gave them a bright smile. "I am."
Alejandro laughed harder and even Mitch snickered. Scott was still gaping.
"Wow, Sid, you got yourself a live one there," Alejandro said when he had calmed down enough to
speak.
Mitch shook his head. "Come on. We should get going before Xavier gets on our case for being late."
Sid glared at Bradley, who still hadn't let him go, before looking back at the trio. "See you later."
They walked past, but as Alejandro came near he leaned in to Sid. "Good luck with that one."
Alejandro looked up and met Bradley's eyes. He gave a wicked grin and quickly pecked Sid on the
cheek.
Bradley growled and started to turn towards him, but Sid grabbed him tight. "Bradley, are you really
planning to start a fight?"
Bradley blinked. "Uh..."
There was more laughter and then Scott's voice came from behind them. "That's the human, right?"
"Shh, not so loud," and then their voices drifted off as they moved further away.
Bradley forced himself to relax. "Nice friends you have."
Sid chuckled. "Yes, so let's not attack them, okay?"
"I wasn't going to attack them, just talk to them." Bradley said, relaxing against Sid. Having Sid
pressed against his side felt good. Bradley brushed his fingers lightly against Sid's back.
"Sure you were," Sid mumbled. "They were just teasing you."
Bradley sighed. "Does that mean everyone knows about me?"
"News travels fast in this sort of town."
Bradley rolled his eyes. "I guess that means I better get used to things fast."
Sid shrugged. "You were the one that chased me down here. Not my fault you got more than you
bargained for."
Bradley was quiet. There was an edge in Sid's voice, one he didn't like. He pulled away and turned to
face Sid, meeting his eyes. "I don't regret it."
Sid looked at him, startled. Then he looked away, the hint of a flush on his cheeks. "I didn't ask if you
did."
Bradley grinned. He liked this side of Sid, this stubborn, cute side. He leaned down and kissed his
cheek. "I know you didn't. I just wanted you to know."
"You're an idiot," Sid said, pulling away and walking around him
Bradley chuckled. "Maybe I am." He hurried to catch up to Sid and quickly took his hand.
Sid jumped in surprise and tried to pull away.
Bradley tightened his grip.
Sid sighed, but held his hand. "Did anyone ever tell you that you're pushy?"
"Nope," Bradley said. "So, those friends of yours... Are they werewolves too?"
"Shifters. That's what we're called. There used to be werewolves, but they've pretty much all been
killed off. What remains are shifters."
Bradley was confused. "But you change into a wolf."
Sid nodded. "Shifters change from wolf form to human form. Werewolves can do the same, but they
have a third form. It's a combination of wolf and human." He spoke softly, his voice sad. "It's a cursed
form."
Bradley wanted to ask more, but he could tell something about the conversation bothered Sid, so he
let it go.
"So how many shifters are there in this town?"
Sid looked at Bradley and then shook his head. "God, you're dense."
"Huh?"
"All of us, Bradley. We're all shifters, well except for Gael's mother."
Bradley blinked in shock. "What?"
Sid laughed. "Woodcutter Valley is a wolf shifter pack. And our so-called mayor is the Alpha. Do
you get it now?"
Bradley nodded and looked around him in a new light. So a whole wolf shifter colony an hour from
Lotters and no one was the wiser. He felt like he walked into a fairytale or maybe a horror book,
except, so far, no one seemed too bad. Everyone had been friendly. It was just a bit of a shock. He
took a breath and then slowly released it. He turned to see Sid studying him.
"What?"
"You okay?" Sid asked.
Just that little bit of concern made something inside Bradley unknot. "Yeah," he said, squeezing Sid's
hand. "I am."
Sid blinked and looked away, flushing. "Come on. You wanted to see the town, right?"
The tour around town wasn't elaborate. It was small and like Sid said, there wasn't much. Still, it
became clear that Woodcutter Valley was self-sustaining. Anything they couldn't do in town they drove
to Lotters or Alexandria for. All of it, it seemed, was in order to keep outsiders from coming into town.
It made Bradley wonder why they let him in. From what he gathered, Sid wasn't someone they would let
bend the rules, so why him? The more they went around town, the more often Bradley noticed people
staring at him. At first he thought it might be because he and Sid were holding hands, but then he noticed
the stares were directed at Bradley alone.
"Brad, let's go to the grocer's. I want to get food for dinner later."
He nodded. "All right."
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