Page 116 of Tempting Fate

Nick shakes his head and wanders off into the kitchen.

“This is Cate. Cate, Jamie and Patch.”

Cate doesn’t approach them the way she did Nick. She eyes them both instead, then swings around to look at me.

“You’re staying here, huh?” she says.

“I—” I haven’t said I will. I want to, but I want an outside perspective. An honest perspective.

Cate lowers her voice, but it makes no difference; they’ll both be able to hear her. Jamie looks concerned. Patch just watches us, expression impossible to read.

“I’ve never seen anyone look at you like that, Em,” she whispers. “If someone looked at me the way they both looked at you when you walked in… I’d stay. I wouldn’t even think about it.”

“You were supposed to talk to them,” I say. “You’ve not even asked a question.”

She rolls her eyes but grins. “Fine. Let me interrogate your boyfriends, then.” Jamie starts in surprise, and Patch holds on to him a little tighter when Cate drops onto the sofa with them both. I shake my head and go to help Nick with the tea.

Best to leave her to it. Nick nudges me when I step up to the counter beside him.

“She’s cool with everything?” he asks.

“Seems like it.”

“You should take her along with you later.”

I look at him and he shrugs. “Jamie’s known about all this shit for a while. Patch was born into it. It can be… a lot. Good to have someone to help you through it.”

“You could come with us, too.” If they won’t mind me taking Cate—and I suspect Nick is right and they won’t—then they won’t mind Nick coming along.

“Nah,” he says, and the smile he gives me is not reflected in his eyes. “Not my scene. You’ll have fun, though. They’ll like you.”

Nervous butterflies erupt in my stomach. God, I hope so.