Page 25 of Tempting Fate

He snorts. It’s easier to talk to him when I’m not looking directly at him, though my lungs are full of his scent, so it’s not like I’m not acutely aware of his presence.

“Yeah, you kind of were.”

I chance a look at him then. His smile is only small, like he’s not sure how the words will be received, but it hits me like a punch in the stomach all the same.

“How… How are you finding the city?” I ask.

“Fine. I’ve only been here a few days. I think I lucked out, finding the place with Jamie and Nick. They’re really helping me settle in.”

I smell the honesty on him. And the attraction. My wolf perks up, but I feel none of the jealousy I’m expecting.

Maybe that’s normal, too. Shouldn’t matter that Em is attracted to Jamie, so long as he’s also attracted to me. And he is. I think.

“Yeah, they’re good people.”

“How did you all meet?”

“Uh, well, I met them through Dax. After he and Vince finally got together, I mean.”

“Finally?” Em asks, incredulous. Yeah, I get it. Even now, Vince is gently leaning against Dax’s side, though they’re both engaged in separate conversations. They’ve taken care to cover their mating bites tonight, but there’s no missing the bond between them. As I watch, Vince’s hand slides against Dax’s until their fingers tangle together.

“It was a little bumpy for a minute there,” I admit. Vince might not be able to hear me, but I’m sure Dax is half-listening as he chats to Cecile. I’m sure she’s listening, too. “But it all worked out. I think it was always meant to.”

“Oh,” Em says with a wistful sigh. “That’s nice.”

“That they’re together, or…?”

He blinks up at me. We’re almost the same height, just enough difference that he has to tip his head a little to meet my eyes. “That you think it was meant to,” he says. He gives me an embarrassed smile. “I guess I’m a bit of a romantic.”

“Really?”

Em rolls his eyes, but I think more in self-deprecation than anything else. Joke’s on him—most wolves are, even if we pretend not to be. We grow up hearing stories of mating bonds and fate and all that stuff. It’s part of who we are.

“So you met everyone after that?”

“Yeah. Kind of. Vince was running some fitness classes, so I met Jamie there, and I’ve met Cecile off and on through the years. We’ve got some overlapping friends.”

“That’s nice, too,” Em replies. “I thought the city was going to be a lot more isolated than this.”

“Why did you move here, then? If you don’t mind me asking?”

Em’s gaze skips away. “Work,” he says, and he’s not lying, but he’s not telling the full truth either. I shrug the thought off. Not my business. “I figured if I came here, it would open up more opportunities in my current job. Didn’t think about the making friends part of it.”

“You left them all behind?”

“I only really have one friend anyway. Cate. She knows where to find me if she needs me.”

I frown, then catch myself and smooth the expression out. How can he only have one friend? Surely, it’s not true. I don’t see how it could be.

Flynn claps me on the shoulder and cool air wafts in as he slips out from between me and Jamie and moves around to talk to Dax and Cecile. I narrow my eyes at him. What is he doing?

Nick has turned away from Jamie, too, drawn into a conversation with Vince, and Jamie takes a long drink from his glass, not looking at me or Em.

“Are you…” I begin, conscious that Em is watching us, a furrow between his brows. “How’ve you been?”

Jamie stares up at me, startled. “Fine. You?”

“Fine.”