"Felicity, what happened?"
Nothing.
"Foxy, tell me."
She shakes her head.
I reach for her chin and grip it, forcing her to look at me, and then I whisper.
"Princess Fox, what happened to you?"
It's a nickname from long ago: a nickname I should have forgotten. It was a title forged from love, and to be honest, it’s not something that’s appropriate for me to use anymore.
It’s a personal name.
Foxy and I…
Well, we aren’t personal anymore.
“I…someone’s hunting me,” she whispers.
“What?”
“Hunting,” she repeats.
“Hunting you?”
Who the hell would hunt a fox?
“Do you mean that someone thought you were an actual fox, and not a shifting one?” I ask, trying to clear up what she’s talking about, but she shakes her head.
“No.”
“Foxy, start from the beginning.”
Because she’s not making any sense, and I desperately, more than anything else, want to help her right now. I want to understand what she’s going through and I want to help her figure out what the problem is. There’s a part of me that is so very thrilled she chose me to talk to today. It’s probably wrong, but…
Well, it feels pretty good to have Foxy in my arms again. The truth is that I’ve missed her every day we’ve been apart. There hasn’t been a single day where I didn’t want her near me, where I didn’
t need her. I’ve never stopped wanting her, and now that she’s here…
It kind of hurts a little bit. If I could have the chance to go punch whoever is chasing her, though? Well, that might make me feel a little bit better, I daresay.
“I…I used Team Shifter,” she says, and I close my eyes, pissed.
Why the hell was Foxy using a dating app? Especially one like that? There are people in Claw Valley who swear by this app. I’ve got a couple of friends who found their mates on it, so it can definitely work. It can. This app connects you with someone who understands you, and it gives you the chance to get to know someone without worrying about appearances, which is so important when you’re looking for a partner.
I get it.
I really do.
Everyone’s looking for love, and so many people look for it in the wrong places, but Foxy?
Foxy doesn’t need a dating app to find love. She’s gorgeous, for one thing. She’s got the personality of a saint, for another. Even though we aren’t dating anymore, and even though our breakup ended pretty horribly, I’ve never stopped thinking she was an incredible person: a wonderful person. She’s the type of girl who always looks out for those around her.
“Why?” I finally manage to get the word out, but damn, it’s kind of hard to do.
“I wanted to date.” She whispers her answer. “I wanted…I wanted to find someone.”