“We’re all wrong for each other,” I say.
It’s a lie.
“We’re too young to feel this way.”
Another lie.
“I’m not ready, and neither are you.”
One more lie to seal the deal.
Then I turn, just the way she told me to, and before he can say anything, I shift into my fox form and start running. I leave the cave, wiggling out of the narrow opening, and I run off into the forest. Before I’ve gone very long, I hear him. There’s a roar that fills the entire forest, and I know that he finally realized exactly what my words mean.
He knows that we’re over.
Forever.
Chapter 1
Foxy
Present Day
The forest isn't supposed to be scary in the middle of the day, so why do I feel so afraid? I actually skipped work for this. I canceled my tutoring sessions today, moved all of my classes to tomorrow, and skipped out on my actual, literal job. Now I'm standing in the center of the woods like a huge dork. Well, more correctly, I'm shaking in the center of the woods because I'm scared out of my mind.
It wasn't supposed to be like this.
Team Shifter is supposed to be a fun, interesting app where you can meet people you care about, and hopefully, you can form some sort of connection or relationship. You're supposed to be able to connect with people who are intere
sting and special and wonderful and...
Well, people who make you feel alive.
I’m supposed to feel good, sexy, and wild when I meet someone from this dating app. That’s the entire point of dating, right? You’re supposed to feel incredible and wild: wonderful and sassy. When someone sees you from across a crowded room – or in my case, a small woodland field – they’re supposed to lock eyes with you. That’s when it hits you: you’re attractive as hell, and they’d be lucky to get with you. That’s what I thought I’d be feeling right now, but I don’t. Something is wrong here. I'm not supposed to feel scared or alone or upset.
I'm definitely not supposed to be wondering what's lurking in the forest.
But then again, I'm desperate.
Or lonely.
Or perhaps…perhaps I'm just bored.
Either way, I know that what I'm doing isn't the smart decision, but I couldn't help myself. It’s been a long time since I was in a relationship with anyone. Years. It’s been years. The tiger shifter I've been chatting with on Team Shifter makes me feel special and sexy and naughty, at least when we’re actually chatting with each other. I like that. I like feeling like I'm a little bit of a bad girl, even if I'm not.
Even if I have nothing else to offer right now, I like feeling like I'm not just the goody two-shoes teacher.
I like feeling like I'm still sexy.
Right now, though, I’m beginning to see why some people don’t like this app so very much. The thing about Team Shifter is that you’re supposed to meet in your animal forms before you decide if you actually want to date each other. Maybe that weeds out the posers who aren’t actually shifters, or maybe it just cuts down on mistaken first impressions. I don’t think meeting in the middle of a forest was the best choice, though. What exactly was I thinking?
Suddenly, I sense something changing in the air, and I realize that I'm no longer alone. I'm in my fox form, and I spin around, looking carefully toward the source of the energy I'm sensing. I wish I knew what this person looked like beyond the fact that they’re a tiger. That's the problem with Team Shifter: you have to meet the other person in your animal form first. There are no pictures exchanged. There are no hints given. You meet the person as an animal and then you can find out whether or not you really connect. That's how it's supposed to work, anyway. I've only used the app a few times, and I've always skated out of meeting people. I always had legitimate excuses for not following through with the dates. One time I had the worst migraine of my life. Another time I felt really tired. There was one date I backed out on because I had too many papers to grade, but now...
Well, now I'm going through with it.
Only, when the tiger shifter comes out of the darkness and I see him, it’s not what I expected. My best friend managed to find herself a dream guy on this app, and even though I’ve been using the app for a long time, I get the feeling that this isn’t really how it was supposed to go. The tiger is beautiful, big, and fierce-looking, but I instantly feel uncomfortable. Something is wrong here, but I don't know what.
Hello, I want to say, but my words come out in a squeak. I am in my fox form, after all, so it's not like I can talk to him. Still, my body is yearning to say something - anything - to express how I'm feeling and what I'm thinking. I want to ask him if it’s really him, and part of me wants to blurt out that I’m feeling a little unwell. Maybe we can reschedule. Perhaps next week would be better.