Controlled Burn (BxB) (Werewolf)

Chapter 18: The Cooldown

After a few hours, Callum woke up, changed out of his ceremonial garb, and stepped out of his camper. He took a seat on the metal picnic table and waited patiently for the pack to return, and several minutes later, he heard them approaching with paws thumping the ground.

They were moving more slowly, and as they got closer, Callum could hear them panting, clearly exhausted by their moonlit run through the woods. The four wolves emerged from the forest simultaneously and walked into the backyard of the Claiborne house.

Just as quickly as it took them to shift into their wolf forms, the four of them changed back into their human forms. Callum observed the subsequent shifts in their essence once more with keen interest. Their essence moved and flowed, changing just as much as their bodies, but once they settled into their human forms, the essence went still and looked as if it were waiting to do it all over again, twitching and waiting for the trigger.

Bella quickly covered her naked body in her bathrobe before walking to the back door of the house. "I'm gonna hit the hay, boys. Goodnight," she told Callum and the rest of the pack. "Don't sleep in too late. I'm gonna whip us up some breakfast in the morning."

"Aye aye, alpha," Jason said in jest between huffs and puffs to catch his breath.

"Night, Bella," Mateo added.

Beau and Mateo were equally as tired. Mateo leaned over with his hands on his knees while Beau interlaced his fingers behind his head. Callum blushed again at the sight of the male beauties. This time, after the encouragement he received from them before their run, he let his eyes linger with a bit less shame.

Bella closed the door behind her and went inside.

"She likes to jump in the shower after a run," Beau explained. "Helps her relax and cooldown."

"And what about the rest of you?" Callum asked. "You guys can use the shower in the camper if you want," he offered.

"We usually chill outside for a little while," Mateo said.

Jason chimed in next. "Beats being cooped up inside."

"Agreed," Callum said with a nod.

The three werewolves joined Callum at the picnic table once they regained their composure and caught their breaths. Beau sat directly across from Callum. Jason sat next to Callum. Mateo sat on the side of the table.

"Tell us about you," Jason demanded from Callum. "We don't know much about you. You're a druid... you talk to animals... you control fire... you grow trees... and Beau told us your parents are dead. That's about it."

"Come on J, be a little more sensitive," Mateo implored.

Jason patted Callum's shoulder. "Sorry, bro. I guess I'm too used to talking about death... doesn't even register as a sensitive topic for me anymore."

"Don't worry," Callum said confidently. "I feel like I'm a little too familiar with death, too."

"And I hope you aren't mad about Beau telling us that," Miguel said next, "we tell each other everything. Everything. No secrets... I mean, we're so close it's hard to keep secrets anyway."

Callum looked at Beau and gave a half smile. "I'm not mad. I know you guys are close. You share a room and everything."

"You can be open with us. We won't judge you for your past or anything like that," Jason affirmed. "Right, Beau?"

The blond werewolf nodded.

"I'll give you the short version," Callum began, "but I definitely want to know more about you guys, too. I know a little bit, but not much."