Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 87502 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 438(@200wpm)___ 350(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87502 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 438(@200wpm)___ 350(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
An idea occurred to me—maybe she needed some time alone. And maybe she would feel better if she didn’t have to face those two women at the post office again—they really seemed to have it in for her for some reason.
"Why don't I go get them for you?" I said.
Her head came up immediately.
"You’d do that?"
The relief in her voice was impossible to miss.
I sat back in my chair and studied her.
"Of course I would, baby," I said quietly.
"Are you sure you don't mind?" she pressed.
I shrugged.
"Vivienne, it's a twenty-minute drive. You're acting like I'm volunteering to cross the Arctic."
A reluctant laugh escaped her, and the sound made me feel absurdly pleased with myself. My ex, Jennie, used to say one of my love languages was Acts of Service. I never minded picking things up from the store or working around the house. I think it came from being raised by my dad for so long after my mom died. After she was gone, if I didn’t do things, they didn’t get done. So it wasn’t a big deal for me to do things like errands or chores now.
"I suppose you're right,” Vivienne said, smiling at me.
I winked at her.
"I usually am."
That earned me an eye roll, but she was smiling—just a little.
There she is, I thought. There's my girl.
The realization slipped into my head before I could stop it.
My girl. That’s how I was thinking of her. Even though I knew I could never have her—even though she’d asked for distance. I just couldn’t seem to help myself—she belonged with me. I knew it in my bones, even if the world said it could never be so.
I took a long sip of coffee and tried very hard not to examine that particular thought too closely.
“I’ll go right after breakfast,” I said.
"Thank you," she said softly. She reached across the table and put her hand on mine, very briefly.
That simple touch sent a shiver of pure desire down my spine, but I tried to keep my voice calm.
"You're welcome,” I said and for a moment our eyes met across the table.
Whatever was troubling her, hadn't gone away. I could still see it there—the worry and uncertainty. But at least she looked a little less overwhelmed than she had a few minutes earlier and for now, that was enough.
A short while later I was heading down the mountain road toward Blackridge with the top down on the Mustang and a list of package tracking numbers in my pocket. I told myself I was only running an errand and giving Vivienne a chance to rest. I planned to be back before lunch.
What I didn't know was that before the day was over, I was going to learn exactly what she'd been trying so hard to hide.
And once I found out, nothing between us was ever going to be the same again.
THIRTY-SIX
KOR
The post office was nearly empty when I walked in, which I considered a blessing. After the Council meeting, I wasn’t exactly in the mood to make small talk with anyone in Blackridge. Barbara Finch was behind the counter, sorting through envelopes with a sour expression on her face, and the moment she saw me, that expression sharpened into something that looked a lot like disapproval.
“Alpha Korwyn,” she said flatly.
“Barbara.” I set the package slips Vivienne had printed out for me on the worn wooden counter. “I’m here to pick these up.”
She glanced at the slips and then gave a short nod.
“I know.”
Something about that answer put me on alert.
“You know?”
“Of course I know.” She shrugged one shoulder and turned toward the back room. “I already pulled them.”
I watched her disappear through the door behind the counter, my instincts prickling. I couldn’t have said exactly what bothered me, but something did. She came back a moment later carrying several boxes and set them down on the counter with a little more force than necessary.
“There you go.”
I looked them over. At first glance everything appeared normal. The labels were intact, and the boxes didn’t look damaged, but as I reached for the largest one, something caught my eye. The tape had been disturbed. The strips had been lifted and pressed back down again—not enough for most people to notice, perhaps, but enough for me. My Were instinct stirred uneasily, and I found myself looking up at Barbara with growing suspicion.
“These have been opened,” I said.
Barbara rolled her eyes.
“Oh, for the Goddess’s sake.”
“They’ve been tampered with,” I insisted.
“No, they haven’t.” She folded her arms over her chest. “They’re exactly the same as when we received them.”
I wasn’t buying that and neither was my wolf. The beast inside me had been restless lately anyway, but now it stirred again, making my voice lower when I asked,
“So nobody looked inside them?”
“No,” she snapped.
The answer came a little too quickly and her cheeks had gone faintly pink. Interesting.