Chapter Six

If Corey was a shifter, she would be a starfish.

She stretched her arms and legs even wider and let off another dramatic sigh as she watched the slow-moving ceiling fan above her, and tried to cry.

She hadn’t been able to since Hallie had moved out.

Maybe she was emotionally constipated.

She tried to sob, but it didn’t catch, and she ended up sounding like a braying donkey, which made her laugh.

She propped up on her elbows and yelled as loud as she could. No one would hear her because Hallie didn’t live here anymore, and she lived in a cabin out in the freaking woods.

This was the house she had spent summers in with her parents. It was their vacation home, and they had offered it to her for a steal of a deal when she had gotten out of college.

She’d loved it, and then loved it even more when Hallie lived in the spare bedroom down the hallway, but now it felt big and empty.

Her phone dinged with a text. She log-rolled over the king-size bed to the bedside table, yanked her phone off the charger to hold it up to her face, dropped it right on her nose, and yelped. That hurt.

Yet another sign she could never live with shifters, because Ace had been all like ‘I want a sandwich’ after he had nearly gotten clawed to death, and her eyes were watering from dropping a damn cell phone onto her face.

She blinked a couple of times to clear the blurriness, and read the text from Longdong.

It was just an address and the name of a bar that was ten minutes down the road.

Huh. Gunner was taking them to his and Hallie’s favorite spot already? Risky. If they bled people tonight, they would have a hard time going back there. Wait. No, they wouldn’t care.

I’m busy pouting.Send.

I know. That’s why I’m inviting you out.A video came through, and it was a selfie video of him at a long table with a bunch of the shifters from today. Three girls were also there, and one was sitting by him.

Corey narrowed her eyes and sat up. Who’s Tits McGee? Send.

Who?

The ten out of ten beside you.Send. Okay, yes, she was a little jealous.

Owen was talking to her but he went to the pisser, and now she’s talking to me. Come save me if you want. Or not. Maybe she will be the love of my life, who knows?

Why were her ears getting hot?

She let off a very human-sounding growl, then pulled the V-neck of the charcoal gray T-shirt she’d changed into down lower to expose her cleavage. She should’ve taken her lip gloss out, but on second thought, she left it. She took a picture at just the proper angle to ensure maximum boob curves, and then sent the picture to him. Ask her if she likes this shade of lip gloss. Send.

Okay, slow down self, he is not yours—

Drive here or I’m coming to get you. Wear that.

She was a little smug with herself. I’ve had three sips of a beer today, I can’t drive. Send.

I’m drinking water tonight so I don’t kill these motherfuckers. I’ll be there in ten.

Oooh, the butterflies that consumed her middle. She jumped up and rushed around like a madwoman. She put on a pushup bra before she pulled her gray V-neck over her torso again, then kicked out of her saggy sweatpants and slid into some black Wrangler cutoff shorts and a pair of black leather ankle boots. She yanked the hairband out of her messy bun and shook her hair out. It was a little messy and a little creased from the hair tie, but that was probably all right!

She rushed to the bathroom and vamped up her makeup, added shimmering dark eyeshadow to make her blue eyes pop, and eyeliner, and burgundy lipstick. She even contoured her cheeks and added a little body glitter to her cheekbones.

She finished applying that right as she heard an engine out front.

Did he drive a fast car? A truck?

She grabbed her little black cross-body purse and speed-walked to the front door. When she threw it open, she froze.

He.

Had.

A.

Motorcycle.

It was all black, just like Gunner’s.

“Oh my gosh,” she whispered to herself.

Ace pulled his helmet off and looked her up and down with the hungriest look she’d ever witnessed on a man’s face.

“Damn,” he said simply.

She grinned and struck a few poses. “Yeah?”

“Hell yeah. Come here, let me put this helmet on you.”

“If I look so good, why are you trying to put more clothes on me?” she teased.

“Safety first.”

“Dweeb. Fine, but if I wear the helmet, what will you wear?” she asked as she locked the front door.

“My shifter superpowers,” he deadpanned.

“Oh. Right. You would probably survive a crash. I have an admission!” she said as she walked up to his motorcycle.

“Admit away, I’m sure it will be something super-normal and not weird at all.”

“Your sarcasm doesn’t hurt my feelings. I was just going to say Gunner has a motorcycle, and when Hallie would ride off with him, I would take videos of them and send them to her. I was secretly jealous, and wished I could ride one.”

“Tonight was meant to be then.” He slid the helmet over her head, and she stood there grinning like an oaf as he tightened the strap under her chin.

“You somehow look even hotter now,” he assured her.

“Can you take a picture of me?” she asked excitedly. “I want to send it to Hallie, and maybe post it on the porn site I make all my income from. Hang on, let me take my pants off.” She moved like she would unbutton her shorts, and then grinned at him. “Just kidding.”

His eyes narrowed. “That’s not funny.”

She giggled wickedly and pointed at him. “The face you’re making is funny.”

He got off the motorcycle and pulled his phone off the bar it was attached to. “Stand by the bike and strike a pose.”

“On my hands and knees?”

“Less weird.”

“Right.” She splayed her legs slightly and lifted her chin, flipped the mirrored visor down, linked her hands behind her head, and popped a hip to the side. “Like that?”

“Ummmm…” He cleared his throat and looked down at the picture he’d taken. “Yep, we’re good.”

He walked up to her and showed her. The picture was darker, the motorcycle was all shiny reflecting the porch light, and she looked curvy and confident. She looked kind of pretty. And maybe even a little dangerous. “Do you like it?”

“I’m gonna put it to use tonight,” he said in a husky voice.

A churning sensation took over her stomach. Whoa, that was hot. “Really? Are you talking about…” She dipped her voice to a whisper, “Whacking off?”

“Whacking off?” he asked with a laugh.

“Yeah, that’s what you boys do with hot-girl pictures, right? You whack off.”

“Stop,” he drawled out, throwing his head back to give his grin to the sky. “I cannot have this conversation if you keep saying that.”

“So, no? No whacking off?”

“Corey.”

“Fine.” She mimed zipping her lips.

He stood there with his eyebrow cocked, waiting, like he expected her to unzip her lips and say it again, but she was being a good girl and behaving, so she stared back.

After a few seconds, he said, “This is literally the hottest picture I’ve ever seen, and you didn’t even try.” He texted it to her, and then explained how to get on the motorcycle behind him, boots on the pegs.

And for the first time in her life, she held onto a man’s waist and rode on the back of a bike that was ten times faster than she had ever even imagined.

He opened it up once with her, and she thought she would die! But when he slowed down, she found herself laughing so hard, because the speed had gotten her stomach like a roller coaster.

She caught a glimpse of his bright-white smile in the sideview mirror, and for a moment, it stole her breath away. He patted her hands where she was clutching his waist, but he didn’t seem to need to tell her anything. He seemed to be telling her she did well, perhaps.

On a motorcycle, it was apparently only a five-minute drive to the hole-in-the-wall bar called the Rat Nest. The logo had a rat wearing sunglasses with a beer in its hand. The owner’s nickname was Rat. She’d known him since she was a kid.

Corey loved this place, but tonight was different. She wasn’t just here with Hallie. She had a very handsome, mysterious shifter helping her off his bike. They had parked next to a familiar motorcycle, and an excited fluttering filled her chest. It was Gunner’s bike, which meant he and Hallie had rode here on it, which meant they were practically a biker gang now.

She tried to dismount smoothly, but almost fell as soon as her heeled boots hit the ground. Ace caught her, steadied her, and laughed, thank goodness.

He helped her unstrap the helmet, then set it on the seat of the motorcycle.

“Won’t someone steal it?” she asked, concerned.

“Good luck to them if they tried,” he answered.

Oh. Right. He would just murder them or something. She really wondered what kind of shifter he was, but it seemed rude to ask. Gunner and Hallie’s helmets were hanging from Gunner’s handle and the backrest. Okay, this was how things were done. Cool. She was catching on.

He opened the door for her and waited for her to pass. Oooh, he smelled like cologne. That was hot.

“Did you just sniff me?” he asked.

“It’s your fault for smelling good,” she said cheekily.

“What are you drinking? I’ll grab it.”

“Twister.”

“A Twister?” he asked. “Never heard of that one.”

“It’s orange soda. This is the only place that serves it around here.”

He looked surprised, but not disappointed. “You got it. Hallie is right over there,” he said with a gesture.

“Um, can I come up to the bar with you?” she asked.

“Stage-five clinger?” he wondered aloud.

“Yep, that’s me.” Actually, it really was. She was ridiculous when she liked a man.

He looked at her a couple seconds longer, like he wanted to say something, but he turned abruptly and headed toward the bar. She followed easily on account of him parting the crowd ahead of her.

She grinned at him in thanks as he pulled out an empty bar stool. It was the only empty, but there was room to stand next to her, which is what he did. Nice and close. She studied his handsome profile as Ace ordered them both Twisters.

“I like that you didn’t pressure me to drink alcohol,” she said over the bar-noise.

“I don’t care if you drink or not. I don’t drink a lot. A beer here and there, but it’s not really my thing.”

“Does it mess with your animal?” she asked curiously.

His quick glance around said she was asking questions she shouldn’t in mixed company.

“I’m sorry,” she said low.

“Don’t be.” He shook his head and tinked his glass of orange soda against hers. “When we get out of here, you can ask me anything you want. It’s just…”

“I get it. Busy bar, and you never know who is listening.”

His smile revealed a slight dimple on his left cheek, and he nodded once. “This is pretty good,” he admitted.

“It’s my favorite soda. This place has been here forever, and has a patio area out back that is family-friendly. Hallie and I used to spend summers here. We got Twisters every time we came here to eat, while our moms ordered beers, and we felt so cool. Now the sodas are a good memory.”

“How are you and Hallie related?” he asked, leaning onto the counter so he could be more eye-level with her. He had short, dark scruff on his face, and his eyes were ice blue—they seemed to glow from the middles out. His jawline was chiseled, and the curves of his shoulders were pushing against his black T-shirt, and she had to concentrate to not get distracted by his sexiness.

She cleared her throat to give herself an extra few seconds to clear her head. “Um, our moms are sisters. Her parents split when she was young, and Hallie spent most of her time with her mom. Our moms were close, so even after she split with Hallie’s dad, she brought her up here every summer. Even when we were in high school and driving, we still had our summers together. Even when Hallie’s mom stopped coming so she could work more hours in the summers, Hallie and I would pool our tip-money for gas and get her here. We just made it happen. In a way, we grew up together. I always counted down with her until we got to see each other the week after school let out every summer growing up. We stopped when we grew up, you know? Things change when you get older. I hadn’t seen her in years, but we kept in touch well. I missed her. I think she missed me too. We reconnected when she needed a safe place to land.”

“I wonder if I ever saw you around when we were younger,” he murmured.

“How old were you when you moved here?”

“Oh, I haven’t lived in Laramie before, but I’m up near Saratoga. I was twelve when my dad brought me here. We had some trouble with the people we were living with, and at the time, the government was pressuring us all to register, especially if we moved to a new place, but we had stayed under the radar with our people, and registering would mean trouble for us.”

“Why?”

“Because of my lineage. It’s not important. Damon gave us some protection living here and staying off the registration.”

“So mysterious,” she said quietly.

He huffed a laugh. “I work at a gas station, and live in the same house I have since I was twelve, and my days were all routine until I found out a new Crew was forming.”

“What gas station?” she asked. “Maybe I’ve been.”

“You know that barbecue spot in the mountains near Saratoga?”

“Moosey’s?”

“Yep.”

“Hell yeah! Ace! I’ve been there dozens of times!”

He chuckled and nodded. “Most everyone around here has been there at some point. I manage the gas station side, and Gunner’s brother, Captain, is the pit-master over on the barbecue side.”

“That’s a drive to work from here,” she pointed out.

“Yeah, well…”

“What?”

He shook his head. “Forget it. I don’t know if I’m allowed to talk about it yet.”

“Who am I going to tell?” she asked. “Hallie barely remembers I’m still breathing, and she’s the only one I tell fun stuff to.”

He snorted and frowned over her shoulder. “Okay, drama queen, I would believe you except she’s been trying to get your attention the entire time you’ve been sitting up here with me.”

Corey twisted in her chair, and yep, Hallie was trapped by the window of a long booth across the bar, waving to her. She lifted her orange soda in the air and pointed to it.

An instant smile commandeered Corey’s face, and she held up her own soda in a silent cheers. “Aw, she does love me,” she murmured in a mushy tone.

“She does. She’s probably just overwhelmed. She’s the lone human in the early days of a Crew forming, and it’s a lot.”

Corey turned back to him. “Spill your secrets. I won’t be deterred.”

“Swear not to make a big deal?” he asked.

She held up her pinky. “I pinky-swear, and those are the most serious oaths in the entire world.”

He hesitated for a few seconds and then hooked his pinky with hers, only he didn’t pull away. He set their hands on the bar top and held her pinky with his.

Butterflies took over her middle again, and she marveled at how easily this man did that to her.

“My boss is from Damon’s Mountains. She approached me and Captain a couple of weeks ago about opening a new location for her.”

Her eyes went wide with the thought of him moving away. “Where?”

“Laramie.”

Chills rippled up her forearms. “Wait, that can’t be a coincidence. Do you think she knew what was going to happen with Gunner’s Crew opening up? Think about it. You and Captain are in the running, and clearly Damon has something to do with that. Do you think the opportunity is Damon’s doing?”

He nodded. “Clever human. The dragon has chess pieces moving into place all over the board. I just don’t know what piece I am yet. Or why I’m on the board at all.”

“You’re unregistered,” she whispered, knowing damn well he would hear her with his shifter senses. “But you’ve been around Damon’s Mountains since you were twelve. He had to know you were here all this time.”

“My dad went to him for permission to settle in his territory the first day we arrived seeking sanctuary. Damon granted it. He’s known about me all along,” he agreed.

“He knows what you are, and that you were supposed to be some kind of king?” she asked in a whisper.

Ace nodded.

Chills, chills, chills! All of the shifter dynamics were so interesting to her. There was so much history here!

Humans knew Damon ran the mountains. They knew he had power over the shifters, and was a big part of policing the species under the radar, but actually getting a front-row seat to the different relationships people had with the dragon dredged up more and more questions from a curious little kitty like her.

“You look all impressed, but you should remember I work at a gas station.”

“So? I work reception for a dentist. I’m not even an oral hygienist. Who cares what your job is as long as you work hard and like your life. Are you paying your bills?”

“I’m doing all right,” he said with a quirk to his lips that said he was doing just fine.

“Then who am I to say your job isn’t important? Own that shit, Ace.” She jammed her finger at him and bobbed her head sassily as she said, “My name is Ace and I work at a motherfucking gas station.”

His face softened and he squeezed her pinky, then released her. “You’re a surprising woman, Corey.”

“Well, I’m no mysterious royal shifter,” she said. “But I can probably keep you on your toes.”

He chuckled and assured her, “You’re lucky you aren’t a shifter. Some girls run as soon as I say I work at a gas station.”

“Good.” She sipped her soda. “You weed out the gold-diggers that way. I wish I had a line that weeded out the lame boys.”

“I’m assuming they take a look at your cleavage and ignore your red flags?” he guessed.

She sipped the drink again. Mmm, delicious. “Yup. You boys and your booby obsession. You make everything confusing.”

“You date a lot?” he asked, but his tone had lost the joking quality, and now he looked curious.

“Some. I had a boyfriend I thought could be important a few years ago, but we just…” She shrugged. “We didn’t match.”

“Who broke up with who?”

“I broke up with him, but he should’ve done it long before I finally pulled the trigger. It felt like he was sabotaging us, and it was almost daily at the end. Just picking at me. Making me miserable until I couldn’t do it anymore. We broke up, and he went and dated one of the oral hygienists in my office for a few months. They broke up, and one day after their breakup, she asked if we could get lunch and talk. I said okay. I mean, I was hurt by it all, but I honestly loved him and wanted him to be happy, and I was not it, you know? I wasn’t enough. It was a long and hard lesson, and I got to rock bottom by the time I left. Anyway…” She slurped her soda again. “Do you want me to continue with this boring story? Or not?”

“I’m invested now. What did she say at the lunch?”

“She wanted to go to this fancy brunch place, and she beat around the bush through appetizers. Halfway through the meal, I finally asked if she was okay? And she said she couldn’t live up to me.”

“What?” he drawled out, eyes wide. All right, Ace was fun. He liked talking about the tea. One thousand and ten points for him.

“So of course I was like, ‘what the fuck are you talking about?’ And she said he talked about me all the time. That I was the one that got away. I was so confused, Ace. So confused. I felt like he hated me by the end. She told me they had been talking before we broke up, and he was playing with the idea of leaving me for her. He was riddled with guilt, but also didn’t know how to tell me what he was doing, or that he had confusing feelings and he was bored in his life with me. My coworker offered him excitement, but when he actually had a relationship with her, all he did was talk about me.”

“Sounds like he wasn’t ready for a real woman,” Ace observed.

“I think so too. Anyway, I ran into him a few months later at the post office, and he asked me to go get a drink and get some closure. I had moved on, you know? I had taken care of my little heart and done self-care, and moved myself through all the phases of grief, and I had become comfortable not disappointing someone every day. He was so…”

“So what?” he asked.

“So urgent with needing to talk to me. So I said yes, and we walked over to this bar next door for a beer, and he gave me the lines.”

“Trying to get you back?”

“Yes. Said he had messed up, that he couldn’t stop thinking about me, that his family missed me, and duh.” She grinned. “I’m awesome,” she joked.

“Naturally. So what did you say?”

“So I said I had one question, and I needed him to answer honestly. That if he had ever cared for me, he would pinky-swear that he would give me a brutally-honest answer.”

“And? What was the question?”

She let a few seconds of silence build up for dramatic effect, and then parted her lips. “I asked him, ‘did you get bored with me because I don’t like butt stuff?’” But she couldn’t even finish the sentence before she was giggling her way through it.

“Oh my God, was this a fucking lie? All of it?” he asked. He threw the little napkin at her as she cackled away. “That was like getting halfway through a movie and the credits rolling. Is that really what you said?”

She had to control her laughter and take three steadying breaths. “You should’ve seen your face.”

“Not cool.”

“That I don’t like butt stuff, or that I lied to a shifter?”

He just sighed, and after a couple of loaded moments, he said, “I don’t give a shit if you don’t like butt stuff. I don’t give a shit. Get it? Butt-stuff joke.”

She threw her head back and laughed so hard. “Oh my gosh.” The giggles lasted on and on because he was laughing now, and feeding her giggle-fit.

“Okay, okay,” she said, settling down. “The rest was true. I asked him…” She cleared her throat and grew serious again. “I asked him if he had pushed me to the point of ending us so he didn’t have to.”

“Oooh, good question. What did he say?”

“He said yes. He didn’t want to admit it, I could tell, but he had pinky-sworn and he knew how important those are to me. So, I told him what use do I have for a man who is too cowardly to end it himself.”

“Damn.” Ace rocked back a few inches and took a sip of the drink, stared at the liquor bottles behind the bar. After awhile he turned to her and said, “I bet he still repeats that in his head.”

She nodded. “That’s the power of an intelligent woman. You do us wrong, we can burn you with a line.”

“Mind grenade. You know, you also don’t have any use for a disloyal man. He was talking to your coworker. That’s fucked up.”

She shrugged. “Everyone I’ve ever gotten serious with has found someone else while we were together. I’m like a shelter for these boys. They only stay with me until they find a better home. So, for the last few years, I’ve gone on dates, but I haven’t let myself get into anything serious. What about you, sexy shifter boy. Do you have thirty-seven ladies on call?”

He chuckled and slowly spun his drink in the ring of condensation the glass had made on the wooden bar top. “I date, but getting serious isn’t fair.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know.”

“Okay, so I spill my guts, and you say ‘I don’t know.’ Party foul.”

He scratched his jaw and looked around. “You want to go join the others?”

She pursed her lips against a sad smile. There it was—the shutdown. All men did it at some point. Ace chose to do his early.

She wasn’t going to force him into opening up though. He could keep his secrets. That’s what boys did. They kept secrets.

“Sure,” she said, giving him an out.

He paid for their sodas and then led her toward the four tables of shifters near the back. A live band had been setting up on the stage at the back, and they opened the notes to a cover song that she absolutely loved, and she was suddenly very happy that she’d accepted his invite out. A rush of happiness zinged up her spine, and without thinking, she hugged his arm. “I’m glad we’re here.”

He came to a halt and looked down at her with blazing-blue eyes and an unreadable expression on the too-sharp angles of his face.

“Oh, sorry,” she uttered, releasing his arm. “I just got excited.”

“No, no,” he said low, a frown drawing his dark brows down. “I don’t mind you touching me. I can feel your…” A tiny smile took the corners of his masculine lips. “I can feel that you’re happy.”

“That’s a good superpower,” she murmured, searching his eyes.

“Sometimes. Sometimes I feel anger or sadness, but you are naturally light. It’s easy to be around you.”

She parted her lips to respond, but was interrupted by Hallie calling her name.

Her cousin was scrambling across four grown men’s laps to escape the booth she’d been trapped in.

One of them yelped and cupped his dick like he’d been racked, and Corey felt for him. Hallie was wearing heels.

“I think you broke it,” the Crew applicant, a stout, barrel-chested gargantuan, groaned.

“Oh hush. You’re a shifter, it’ll grow back,” she muttered as the Crew applicant complained.

“Yeah, I don’t think that’s how it works,” one of the others pointed out.

Corey pursed her lips as Ace meandered over to the table to greet Gunner and the others. Hallie grabbed her hand and called over her shoulder, “We are going out to smoke!”

“Wait, you don’t smoke,” Gunner called, confused.

Hallie pointed to the sign above the side door that read Smoke. It was the firepit’s name, but the boys probably had no clue.

Corey bit back a grin as Hallie pulled her through the swinging door to an outdoor firepit, where people did at times smoke, but tonight it was empty on this part of the deck.

“You are giving googly eyes to Ace,” Hallie said, rounding on her.

“I don’t even know how to make googly eyes,” Corey muttered as she turned the dial to turn on the propane firepit. It was an enormous stone number with a timer. She cranked it to thirty minutes, and the flames jumped to life as Hallie grabbed a couple of blankets from the wooden bin against the railing.

“What’s going on?” Hallie asked.

Corey settled onto the cushion of the bench seat by the fire. “Maybe I’m lonely because someone doesn’t pay attention to me anymore.”

“You’re so high maintenance,” Hallie teased.

“Damn right I am. The last five months it was you and me against the world, and I rearranged my whole life around keeping you safe. The transition back to normal life is necessary, but it doesn’t mean it’s easy. It’s boring.”

Hallie tucked a blanket around Corey’s legs like a doting older sister, and then took the seat next to her and tucked her own blanket around her legs.

She leaned over and rested her head against Corey’s shoulder. “It’s not always easy for me either.”

“You have Gunner to distract you,” Corey muttered.

“I’ve been having a hard time feeling safe,” Hallie admitted softly. “It hurts Gunner. When I consciously think about it, I know I’m safe. He would kill anyone who came after me. Fuck, he did, Corey. He killed Derek. He doesn’t have an ounce of guilt over it either. But I was on the run for so long that the fear became a huge part of me. Maybe it’s the biggest part of me now. I don’t think Gunner would ever consider being an Alpha of a Crew if I didn’t exist in his life. He’s trying to build a safety net for me that I can settle into and feel safe.”

Corey thought about it. She tried to imagine being in Hallie’s position, and even imagining it made Corey’s mind skitter away.

She couldn’t imagine being at the receiving end of a stalker’s attention. It had been terrifying watching Hallie go through it.

Good on Gunner for not getting his feelings hurt that even he couldn’t make Hallie feel safe. He was building up weapons around her. She remembered the way Ace had appeared out of nowhere with his hand around that shifter’s throat earlier, and she nodded and rested her head against the top of Hallie’s. Gunner was doing right by her cousin.

“Do either of you have a light?” a man from the next patio asked. There was railing and a thin strip of grass that separated this porch from the family-friendly one at the Rat Nest.

“Sorry, neither of us smoke,” Hallie told him.

“Pity. You both looked fun.”

Corey snorted. “So we can only be fun if we smoke?”

He shrugged. The man was their age—blond hair, built, probably five-eleven or six foot. Confident. Good looking. “I didn’t say that,” he said, lifting his hands in surrender. An unlit cigarette hung between his fingertips. “Just asking for a light is all.”

“There’s a firepit,” Corey said helpfully. “With a flame.”

He hopped the fence a little too gracefully, and Corey narrowed her eyes at him as she watched him light his cigarette with the flame of the firepit. “Shifter?” she guessed.

He glanced up at her, and then took the seat across the fire from her and Hallie. “Not like the ones inside right now. Did you see who is in there?”

Corey sat up straight, and Hallie separated too. She exchanged a glance with her, and then trained her attention back on the man. Hallie’s eyes were also narrowed with suspicion.

“What about them?” Corey asked.

“Nothing. They’re all dominant. Just makes it a little heavy to be inside with all of them.”

Corey relaxed back against the seat. That was fair.

“So you aren’t dominant?”

“I didn’t say that,” he murmured, and now she could see the gold glow to his eyes. “I said it’s too heavy being around the others.”

“Do you know any of them?” Corey asked nonchalantly.

“I know all of them but one.”

“Which one is a mystery?”

The man stared at her from across the fire, but it wasn’t in an unfriendly way. “The one who was buying you orange soda.”

“Observant.”

He flicked his lit cigarette into the flame, and stood.

“You didn’t smoke your cigarette,” she observed.

“I don’t smoke either,” he said crisply before he turned to hop back over the fence.

“How do you know all of them?” Corey asked before he could disappear.

“You’re both human,” he murmured, turning toward them. “You probably don’t know what is in that building right now.” He arched his eyebrows. “That’s a gathering of monsters in there. What I can’t figure out is what you two humans are doing right in the heart of that disaster?”

“Didn’t you hear? There’s a new Crew in the mountains.”

“Oh, I heard. Every shifter heard. You didn’t answer my question though. What are two humans doing with them? Are you groupies? Shifter chasers?” He lowered his chin. “You need help? If so, you don’t have to say it out loud. Just nod.”

Corey respected it. He was asking them if they needed help. That was good-man shit right there, but they didn’t need the help.

Corey tipped her head to Hallie. “Mate of Gunner.”

“Holy fuck.” He laughed and backed away a couple paces. “He’s claimed you?” he asked.

“He’s my man.” Hallie stood and offered her hand for a shake.

The man looked at her hand, then back to her face, and then to the door behind her. “You tamed the beast?”

“That man ain’t tame, and you and I both know it.”

A sly smile took his lips. “Good answer. Means you know what you’re into.” He stepped forward and quickly shook her hand, then backed away again. “I’m Wreck.”

“Like shipwreck?” Corey asked.

“Just Wreck.” He twitched his chin toward the door. “Those boys will know me.”

“What Crew are you with?”

“Fuck,” he murmured, shaking his head. “No way would I be caught in a Crew.”

“Lone wolf?”

“Lone somethin’,” he said with a wicked smile. “I’m not a wolf though.” He lifted his chin and looked at Corey. “Who are you with? Who is the big one?”

“A friend.”

A slow smile stretched his lips, and he dropped his gaze to the flames. “With shifters, there are specific looks they give. Hungry looks when they’re wanting a hook-up. A hook-up takes the edge off the animal. It’s a reset button. A suspicious look says they don’t trust someone completely, but they’re interested. There’s anger, and that’s trouble. The dominant ones can’t control their reactions, unless you’re the blue dragon. He never slips, right?” He lifted glowing gold eyes to Hallie. “Say if someone’s ex-boyfriend won’t stop stalking them, and he dies, the blue dragon would never be involved with something so risky, right? Or would he, if the reward was big enough.”

“What are you talking about?” Hallie asked. Corey could feel her tension now.

The shifter blinked slowly and dragged his attention back to Corey. “I saw the way the big one was looking at you. It isn’t anger. It isn’t suspicion. It isn’t looking for a hook-up.”

“How does he look at me?”

He dropped his gaze to the fire, and then back up to her, and a small smile took the very corner of his lips. “Like you’re his. Careful with that one. You’re fragile.” He tilted his head toward the door. “You’ve got company.”

She checked the door, and it opened. Gunner led the way, followed by a couple of the others, and then Ace came out. When she turned, the shifter was gone. Just…vanished like he had never been there.

She could see the change on Ace’s face as the smile drifted from his lips, and he lifted his nose to the air and scented the breeze. His gaze turned hard and he locked eyes with her. “You okay?” he asked.

“Of course.”

He scanned the other deck full of people eating and hanging out, then slowly made his way to her and sank down beside her. “Interesting conversation?” he asked.

“Illuminating conversation,” she corrected him. “Do you know someone named Wreck?”

The expression on his face froze into something unreadable.

“You talked to Wreck?” one of the other guys asked from where he was talking to a waitress who had followed them out here.

“Yep.”

Gunner was leaning back against the bench with his arm draped around Hallie’s shoulders, but he was staring thoughtfully at Corey with that striking, bi-colored gaze of his. He stood suddenly and sauntered over to the railing, scanned the crowd on the adjacent deck, and then the woods behind the bar. “If he’s back in town, why didn’t he apply for the Fastlanders?” he asked aloud.

No one seemed to have an answer, so Corey spoke up in hopes of being helpful. “He sounded like he wasn’t interested in a Crew.”

“Mmm,” Ace said from beside her. He was staring at Gunner’s back. “Want me to go find him?”

“You won’t find him,” one of the others—she thought she remembered his name was Owen—said. “He’s a ghost.”

Okay, now she was super-intrigued.

“How does everyone know him?”

There were five loaded moments of silence while she looked from face to face, but no one was saying anything. The waitress saved the awkwardness.

“Can I get anyone anything out here?” she asked, hanging halfway in the open door.

The boys got real chatty after that, putting in food orders left and right, and another round of drinks. She was only halfway through her soda so she said she was fine, but Ace asked if she liked hot wings, and who was she to turn down hot wings?

“Um, hell yeah. I should warn you though, you are about to see a different side of me, Ace. You might not be attracted to me after you see me devour wings.”

A slow smile took his lips, and he turned to the waitress and asked, “Can you add extra sauce on them?”

The waitress grinned. “You got it. You want ranch on the side?”

Corey leaned forward so she could see her better. “Extra ranch.”

“Attagirl,” he rumbled. “Can we get a refill on the sodas too?”

“Sure thing. All on the same check?”

“Our check has us two on it, and anything that one and that one want,” he pointed to Hallie and Gunner.

“You got it. I’ll have those right out.”

Ace thanked her, and then turned to Corey and pointed to a speaker up on the corner of the overhang. A song had just started from the band inside, and Corey gave him a wide-eyed, pursed-lip smile. “I love this song.”

“I know it too. They must be doing covers tonight.”

“Corey!” Hallie called from where she was sitting. “Come on, girl!” She stood and shook her little butt, and for a moment, Corey sat there staring at her cousin in awe. Shock and joy warred for her attention.

Only a few months ago, Hallie had been scared for her life—on the run, paranoid—and the life had been drained from her eyes. Now she was dancing in the middle of a bunch of humongous shifters, eyes on her and full of happiness.

She didn’t know why it made her eyes burn a little bit. The old Hallie was coming back, and in a way, Gunner and these people were helping her do that.

Ace was looking at her face with this soft expression in his bright-blue eyes. “Go dance with her,” he said softly.

Something told her he understood. Corey patted his hand, and he flipped it quick, squeezed hers, and as she stood, he held it. She looked down at where they held hands, and her heart was beating so hard against her chest.

How does he look at me?

Like you’re his.

She lifted his hand and pressed it against her cheek before she released it, then made her way over to an empty space under the speaker that Hallie was dancing toward.

She didn’t know why she’d pulled his hand to her cheek. She couldn’t explain it. She didn’t hate that he looked at her like that.

Ace was so fun, so self-assured and confident. Dangerous, sure, but he seemed in control of that side of himself. There was something so sexy about being dangerous but in control of it.

She dared a glance back at him. He was sitting on the bench—elbows on his knees, hands clasped, face turned toward her, eyes on her. From here she could see the flames of the fire reflecting in the blue. He was the most handsome man she’d ever seen.

She turned and held up her hands like she was taking a picture, eye winked, smile painted on her lips.

He chuckled and hung his head, then looked back at her and twitched his chin toward Hallie. Go have fun, he seemed to say.

She was. She was having fun.

This was her new favorite memory of Rat Nest. Her holding hands up in the air with Hallie, laughing and shimmying, when they were grown, after everything they had been through. No care for the eyes on them, no care for anything in this world but this moment as they sang off-key to the song they’d danced to when they were carefree kids running around these mountains, back when life had made sense.

Life was starting to make sense again.

At the end of the song, she spun Hallie out and back in, tried to dip her, and they nearly fell to the ground, only barely able to stay upright.

The first notes of a slow song she recognized came on, and one of the guys asked her something. She was laughing too hard to hear it properly, especially under this speaker, so she cupped her ear and asked, “Huh?”

“I asked, are you single?” Owen said.

She glanced at Ace. He was standing at the railing talking to Gunner, but had turned, and his gaze was trained on Owen’s back.

“Did my sick dance moves seduce you?” she joked.

“A little.”

“Boy, you could not handle me.”

“I could. Easily. Women are simple. Feed them and fuck them, and when they get an attitude, bring them flowers.”

“Ha,” she belted out. “I’m more complicated than that.”

“Complicated how?” he asked, approaching. “You don’t like flowers?”

“I would rather have bacon. Move along, I’m dancing with my cousin.” She did a little gesture with her fingers.

“One dance,” Owen said, but she didn’t miss it, he glanced over his shoulder at Ace.

He was trying to pick a fight.

“Owen, cut it out,” Hallie told him. “If you’re so smart about women, you would know that when we’re dancing together we don’t need a stupid boy to interrupt us. Let us have fun.”

Now Gunner was paying attention, sitting back on the railing, his arms crossed over his chest.

“Come on. You don’t have a ring on you,” Owen said. “One dance.”

“Fine,” Corey quipped. “One dance. With Ace.”

She offered out her hand and looked at Ace. A slow blink took him as he redirected his glare away from Owen’s back, and his eyes softened on her.

Without a word, he pushed off the railing and strode toward her to the stupid-boy, “Ooooohs,” that followed him.

He dipped his handsome gaze to the ground, and then up to her again as he slid his hand against hers.

“You’re going to dance with gas-station boy over me?” Owen scoffed. “Do you know who I am?”

“Currently you’re a douchebag,” Hallie pointed out. “And a fun-squasher.”

“Gas-station boy,” she murmured as Ace pulled her against him and smoothly swayed them side to side. Oh, so he knew how to do this. “If I come to your gas station, will you give me free orange soda?”

“I’ll buy you anything you are hungry for,” he said easily.

“Does your gas station have bacon?”

His smile stretched bigger. “No, but we have the best barbecue in the world.”

“Are you asking me out?” she wondered cheekily. God, she felt bold around this man.

He spun her out slowly, and then back, pulled her against him again, and was quiet. The others, including Owen, had gone back to hanging around the firepit and on the railing, and Hallie was snuggled against Gunner’s chest, looking up at him and talking. He had his arms completely wrapped around her cousin.

Ace really wasn’t answering her question, and now she felt awkward. “Sorry,” she murmured. “Let’s pretend I didn’t say that, and just have fun tonight. I didn’t mean to push you.”

“I’m not looking for that with anyone,” he said low as they danced. “Especially with…”

“With what?” she asked, her cheeks on fire from embarrassment. This was a big rejection.

“With, you know…”

She stopped dancing and searched his eyes. “I don’t know.”

“A human.”

She released his hands and stepped back, because she felt slapped. “But…” She frowned. “Hallie is a human.”

“Not for long. What are we going to do, Corey? Pursue this, and then what? I Turn you?”

“What? No!” she whisper-screamed.

“You don’t even want to be a part of the Crew. If I let you like me, your life will revolve around this damn Crew you don’t even want to be a part of.”

“Let me like you,” she repeated in a disgusted tone. The nerve. “How do you even know you will be in the Crew?”

“Because I just got the official invite from Gunner.”

She was so stunned, she didn’t have any words to respond. She looked over at Gunner, who was staring right back at her. Okay. Okay!

“I can’t drag you into what I am going to have to deal with,” Ace said softly.

“I feel so stupid.”

“What? Why?”

“Because I’m sitting here asking questions on why you wouldn’t date me. I just met you. I don’t beg men. I’m completely fine on my own. I just thought there was something.”

“You complicated it by giving me the bagel.”

“So…you don’t like me, the animal just still sees the gift? Is that it?”

“I don’t…I don’t know yet. Maybe.”

She nodded. Stupid girl. “This has been fun, with the flirting and the ride on your motorcycle and the sharing stories, but I’m totally good with friendship.”

“Corey—”

“Nope.” She backed off a little farther. “You told me how you feel, and I appreciate it. That’s actually honorable, telling a girl exactly where they stand instead of trying to get in their pants or leading them on. Friendship.” She stuck out her hand for a shake. Her cheeks were burning with mortification. He didn’t take her hand, so she stuck it out farther.

With a little huff of a sigh, he shook it. “Friends.”

“Want a drink?” Owen asked from where he had apparently been watching.

“Sure.”

“Corey,” Ace growled.

“It’s okay, friend. I’m having fun tonight.” She turned and followed Owen inside, and forced herself not to look back at him.

She didn’t know why she had done that. It was such a girl-move, but you know what? She didn’t care. He’d made her feel so stupid, and he had done it where the entire Crew could hear. She wasn’t dumb, she knew they had all been listening.

Owen cut through the crowd, and checked back on her a couple times. “You good?” he asked.

“Yeah. Sure.”

“All right, pouty pants, here’s the deal,” he said as he pulled out a stool at the bar for her. “I’m not in this to date you.”

Corey rolled her eyes closed and sighed. “Okay.” This was a lot.

“I don’t date humans either.”

“Then why were you trying to dance with me?”

“To rile up Ace. Fucker is just floating into the Crew with no effort. I wanted him to slip up.”

“So you wanted to dance with me to get to him.”

“Yeah, kind of like you said yes to a drink with me to get to him.”

Touché.

“You’re safe from getting flowers from me,” he said. “What are you drinking?”

“I kind of want to go home.”

“Don’t be a party pooper.”

She frowned. “I’ve never heard that come from a grown man’s mouth.”

Owen lifted a finger to the bartender as she passed, and she veered toward him. “Hey gorgeous, can I get a Banquet for me, and for the lady…” He arched his blond brows in question.

Owen was handsome and built, for sure, and would’ve totally been her type, but apparently now she liked dark hair and blue eyes. “Margarita.”

“Nice,” Owen told her. “And a top-shelf margarita on the rocks.” He turned to her. “They can do a flavor. You want strawberry? Raspberry? Mango?”

“Mango,” she answered, perking up. “With sugar on the rim?”

“I’ve got you,” the bartender said.

“You also don’t have to worry about getting flowers from me,” she said.

“Good. I like the upfront stuff too. I only fuck shifters. Humans are too fragile. Ace is right, you know. You two can’t be dating without the actual conversation about you Turning. Just so you are aware of what that entails, depending on what he is, he has to rip into your skin bad enough to bleed you to near death, and the venom on his teeth has to take over your immune system enough to kick in that super-healing. Not all humans make it.”

Her heart thudded against her breastbone. “So…Hallie will have to be bitten by Gunner?”

“Yep. And it will hurt and be awful. If she survives it, she will need people to take care of her body while her bear fights for space inside of her. And then if she gets through all of that, her bear will be unmanageable for a while. Maybe forever. Some new Turns have to be put down.”

“Geez,” she murmured, traumatized.

“That’s not to scare you. It’s just honesty. If you ever want it laid out honest, you come to me, okay?”

“Sure. Who are you?”

“What do you mean?” Owen asked.

“You asked me if I knew who you are, like you are important. Who are you?”

“Aaah, yeah, no one that important, but I do all right. I’ve worked in Kong’s sawmill for the last few years, and moved up the ladder. I couldn’t go anywhere, and I was getting bored. Well, not me so much as my animal. He feels caged easily.”

“Who is Kong?”

“He’s a silverback. He and his mate have their hands in a lot of businesses. That family is building a legacy around these parts. He has owned the sawmill up near Saratoga for years, and started expanding to logging teams ten years back to cut out the middlemen. He has Gunner as the foreman of a new crew on one of the mountains close to here, and he put me in his logging crew to get me out of the mill. Let me stretch my wings a little.”

“Wings. So you’re a flight shifter?”

“Maybe, maybe not. Shifter one-oh-one, you don’t ask about animals. You let a shifter tell you when they’re ready.”

“And if they’re never ready?”

“Then you still don’t ask.” He tilted his head toward the Smoke door. “Ace ain’t gonna tell you. I don’t even know if the blue dragon knows what he is. There is speculation, but no one knows for sure. Other than his dad, who died a few months back.”

“So you’re part of Gunner’s logging crew. Is that why you applied for the Fastlanders?”

“Honestly? I would’ve applied to any Crew in Damon’s Mountains. The blue dragon hasn’t expanded territory in my lifetime. Rumor has it his dragon is needing more. Needing bigger, but no one can figure out why. The Fastlanders have been in the works for a while. I heard the daughter of Beaston is a seer, and she’s been in talks with Damon about the next Alpha. Apparently Gunner is it. He has the full support of the blue dragon, so why wouldn’t I want to join?”

The bartender set their drinks in front of them, and Owen slid his card to her and said to keep a tab open.

Corey was deep in thought. Owen might be a prick, but he was open with information, not a closed vault like Ace was. “What’s the benefit?” she asked.

He took a swig of his beer. “Benefit of what? Being in a Crew?”

She nodded.

“It’s complicated. Part of it is a sense of security. Of safety. But then, every member’s beef with the outside world becomes the beef of the Crew. I’ve got a past. Probably everyone sitting out there by that firepit does. If that past ever comes back to haunt us? They will have the entirety of the Fastlanders crammed down their throat.”

“So it becomes like a family?”

“Yes, but in some ways deeper. The Alpha can form bonds to his members. The strength of that bond depends on the Alpha. Some Alphas can even feel where a person is, or hear their thoughts if they are loud enough. Time will tell what kind of Alpha Gunner is.”

“Do you just share this information with anyone?” she asked. “Seems like this is only for shifters.”

“You’re Hallie’s cousin, right?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

He shrugged. “You will probably be the one she asks to take care of her body while she’s being Turned. You’re going to find all of this out by observing it, or by someone telling you.”

“Oh.” She frowned and sipped her mango margarita. “So do I say yes to taking care of her…body? Even if I am unsure of her decisions?”

“Yes.” He lifted his chin higher into the air and canted his head. “Being asked to be there when the animal comes into existence is an honor. Even if you don’t see it that way now, someday, you will. She’s your family. You take care of family. Now, my turn to ask questions. Why don’t you want to be a part of the Crew? I heard you were given an official invite during your interview.”

“Because…” She frowned and thought on her answer. “Because I don’t know if I believe in all of this.”

“Believe in shifters?”

“No, I know they exist. I’ve been around the mountains long enough to know they’re real. Everyone knows they’re real. I just don’t know if I understand the culture enough to want to be a part of it. It’s all very intense.”

“For a human, I could see that.”

“But for shifters too, right? It’s intense?”

“From the day we are born, we learn that life is chaos. It’s fighting and pain and choosing loyalties carefully, getting hurt, and getting stronger. It’s war, and peacetime, and war and peacetime, and that cadence will never change, and it will never ease up. We learn early to appreciate the hell out of the peacetimes. So no, it’s not intense for us. We are born into chaos, we live in chaos, and we die in chaos.”

“That part. That’s the part I don’t know if I want to tether my life to.”

“It would be a more peaceful, easy life if you walk away. If you stay on the outside.”

“Yes.”

He took a drink of his beer, his eyes on her. “You’ll also never know the absolute happiness in those peacetimes.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ll live your mediocre, boring, human life, and things will never get bad enough for you to pause in a happy moment and know true joy.”

Chills rippled up her spine.

“You’ll probably die early with us, but at least you’ll live while you’re breathing.”

He set his empty bottle down and cleared his throat. “I’ve got to go back out and schmooze the Alpha.”

“Why did you come in here with me?” she asked.

Owen shrugged. “To give you a break from the awkward moment you put yourself in.”

She huffed a laugh and nodded. “Fair enough. Thank you for that.”

“Sure. I’ll send Hallie in here. You girls can dance your butts off on the dance floor or fuck, I don’t know. Do whatever you do in bathrooms as a girl-herd.”

He turned to leave, but she called out, “Hey Owen?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks.”

He gave a little salute. “No problem, human. Oh, and you’re welcome.”

“For what?”

He grinned. “For getting Ace’s attention back on you.” He offered a wink and disappeared into the crowd. As he did, she noticed a tall, dark-haired man with blazing-blue eyes in the crowd. Ace.

If she had any pull to put her vote in for a shifter getting a place in the Fastlanders? She would put in a good word for Owen. He really hadn’t pushed her for anything.

Ace sauntered up and gestured to the newly-open seat Owen had been sitting in. “Can I sit?”

She shrugged. “Suit yourself.” She turned toward the wall of liquor bottles and sipped her drink.

“I deserved that,” he told her.

“Deserved what?”

“You going off and having a good conversation with someone else.”

“He didn’t try anything. He’s probably a good man, actually.”

“Yeah—”

“I’m good with it,” she interrupted him.

“Good with what?”

“Friendship. The friendzone. I’m good with it. I’m actually really good on my own right now. I don’t need anything complicated. I’m happy.”

He nodded once. “Good.”

A fast song came on, and he leaned onto the bar top and stared at the dance floor. There were a few couples boogying there. “Want to dance again?”

She looked at the couples dancing, and tried to reposition her mind. She could stay feeling stung, or move forward and be a great friend.

She sucked her drink down to the ice and nodded, only this time she didn’t offer her hand when she went to dance.

It took about until the middle of the song before she really loosened up and appreciated him acting like a grown man. He had shared that awkward moment outside with her, and instead of ignoring her, he had come in and worked on getting them back to a fun place. Attaboy.

Midway through, she was trying all of her stupidest dance moves, his booming laugh egging her on. That’s when Hallie showed up to match her weird dance mojo.

Ace hung in it, doing his own weird stuff, and she liked it. She liked that he was this giant, muscled-up shifter behemoth who didn’t care if people were watching when he had fun.

By the end of the song, the other applicants for the Fastlanders had filtered back inside and taken over a long table near the stage, where the live band was absolutely rocking it.

The rest of the night was amazing. She put it out of her head that she’d been rejected and had fun. It was even a blast getting to know the guys. She’d never hung out with a bunch of shifters like this, and most of them were hilarious with their one-liners.

And watching Hallie’s happiness was healing for her soul.

She’d been feeling like she was losing Hallie, but that was selfish of her.

Hallie had been in a cocoon for so long, and Corey hadn’t realized it.

Now? Hallie was emerging, and God, she was stunning.

She did cast her attention time and time again to Ace, but she couldn’t help it. Her little heart liked him, and it just was what it was. She would move past the crush phase and join him in the friendzone as fast as she could, but for tonight? She really liked him. He was handsome, sure, but it was more than that drawing her to him. He was a watcher, a leader, and his confidence was so sexy. He was funny, and she’d always liked senses of humor. She’d always had a thing for mysterious men, and he had secrets in spades.

Last call surprised her.

When the bartender announced it, she was floored. It was not already two in the morning, right? She’d only had the one margarita earlier in the night, so her head was clear. She’d been going on good vibes and happy energy all night. But when she pulled her phone out of her purse for the first time tonight, it indeed said it was 1:53 a.m.

Holy moly!

When she looked around the dance floor, only Hallie was near her. The Fastlander applicants were filtering out of the bar.

Shit, how was she going to get home? She turned to Hallie to ask, but she remembered Gunner’s bike out front. She couldn’t climb on the back behind Hallie.

“Ready?” a deep voice behind her asked.

Ace was there.

“Oh, you don’t have to take me if you don’t want to.”

His dark eyebrows lowered. “What?”

“I mean…if you don’t want to give me a ride, I can find one.”

“Of course I’ll give you a ride, weirdo. Come on. I brought you here, I haven’t been drinking tonight, I’ll get you home safe.”

“Oh.” She looked around, hoping for an epiphany.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s just…”

“What?” he asked, looking concerned.

“It’s just I’d feel weird hugging you on the back of your bike, you know? Since we are only friends.”

He looked genuinely troubled. “I didn’t mean to make you feel that way, Corey. Come on.” He grabbed her hand and led her toward the door, but she yanked her hand out of his grasp.

“I don’t like how you are confusing me,” she told him. “You are hot and cold.” She dropped her gaze to the floor. “You confuse me, and I don’t like it.”

The lights were dimming as people left, and there was a growl in Ace’s chest as he searched her eyes.

And then he did something that made her go still. He slid his hand around the back of her neck. “How much have you had to drink?”

“One.”

He looked almost…angry. With her? With himself?

“Fuck, Corey. I don’t know what I’m doing.” He leaned down and paused an inch away from her lips, waiting.

For what? For her?

He’d been open with what he did and didn’t want. He had told her she was a friend. Right? So why did she want to kiss him so badly?

It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair! He was a boy who toyed with girls’ emotions.

She shoved him back. “Kiss me when it means something to you, Ace. I’m not an easy girl, and I don’t need you.”

She walked to the exit and pushed the swinging door open. Owen was waiting outside. “What?” she asked testily.

“Waiting to see if you need a ride back.”

“You’ve been drinking, fuck off,” Ace growled from behind her.

“Ask her who she wants to go with!” Owen yelled.

“Oh, we’re going to play the whose dick’s bigger game?” she belted at them. “You can give Gunner a ride home. I’m riding with Hallie.”

She made her way to Gunner’s motorcycle, where he was waiting with a helmet for her. Hallie was already on the bike, waiting.

“She can ride?” Ace asked.

“She’s fine,” Gunner murmured, but even Corey didn’t miss the growl in his tone.

He handed Corey the helmet. She pulled it on, and didn’t even bother to fasten it before she climbed on the back of Gunner’s motorcycle and wrapped her arms around her cousin.

She watched Owen and Ace track their exit, but she didn’t care. Stupid boys—both fighting over a prize they didn’t even want.

Hallie rode slower than Ace, but that was okay. She was proud of her cousin for learning to ride such a heavy bike, and she did well.

She heard an engine behind them, and she turned to see Ace riding slightly behind them, followed by a few cars behind him.

When they got to Winding Creek Way, Hallie split off toward Corey’s cabin while the others picked their way up the gravel road toward 1010 Winding Creek Way, where their temporary housing would be set up for the next few days while Crew-applicant decisions were made.

Corey watched Ace split off at the fork. He had his helmet on, but he turned toward her and gave a nod before he disappeared into the trees. A hollow feeling took over her middle, and she closed her eyes the rest of the way up the hill to her cabin to just feel the swirl of emotions in her middle.

“Boys are hard,” Hallie said as she cut the engine.

She thought she’d misheard her through the helmet, so Corey asked, “What?”

Hallie took her helmet off and put the kickstand down, waited for Corey to dismount. “I said boys are hard.”

“That’s what she said,” Corey teased half-heartedly.

“I saw what happened. I didn’t hear all of what was said, but I saw your face when Ace was talking to you outside. You like him, huh?”

Corey shrugged and put her helmet on the seat. “Doesn’t matter. I’m fine the way I am.”

Hallie studied her. “Want to do a slumber party?”

“What?” Corey asked hopefully.

“The boys will be fine without me around. Gunner has his hands full getting them settled into their tents. Want me to spend the night?”

“Yes!” Corey exclaimed. “Hell yeah.”

Okay! Neither one of them had work tomorrow morning, so this could work!

The next hour was taken up with frozen pizzas, ice cream, PJs, and girl-talk about how Hallie was adjusting to the idea of being the mate of an Alpha of a Crew in Damon’s Mountains. And bless Hallie, she didn’t push her to talk about her confusing feelings on Ace. When that subject was finally broached, all Hallie said was, “You know, any man would be lucky to have you.”

Corey forced a smile and leaned back into the couch, curled her knees up to her chest. “We both know even if we chose each other, he would find someone better to settle with.”

“That’s bullshit. Your romantic history does not define who you are as a woman, Corey. It defines them. I know how good you were to them. How many of them tried to come back to you?”

Corey shrugged. Hallie knew that answer. Almost all of them. Didn’t change any of the outcomes, though.

“I’m happy where I am. Men just add stress.”

Hallie’s smile softened. “I wanted to ask you something.”

“Yes.”

Hallie frowned slightly. “You don’t even know the question yet.”

“You want me to take care of your body while you are Turning.”

Hallie’s eyes went round. “Uuuuh, yes, when that time comes. Obviously yes. But that’s not what I was going to ask.”

“Oh. What then?” she asked.

“Gunner and I are going to do a courthouse wedding, and I know it won’t be a huge deal, but I wanted to know if you would…” She inhaled deeply. “We need a witness, but I would love it if you stood beside me as my maid of honor.”

Corey’s heart filled. “What?” she whispered thickly.

“He gave me a ring, but it’s in the shop being sized to fit me. I wanted to show it to you when it was sized and tell you all about it, but the jeweler is slow as molasses.”

“Yes!”

“Yes?”

“Fuck yeah I’ll stand beside you, Hallie.”

“And you’ll be there when I Turn?”

Her eyes and her heart were so full. In a thick voice that threatened to choke her, Corey whispered, “I would be honored.”

“And will you consider being a part of the Crew?”

“Hallie.”

“I know you said you needed time, but I want you to really think about it. You said you feel like an outsider, and I hate that. This way you would be at every meeting, you would be in the know, you would understand everything that is happening with my life, because it would be your life too.”

“I don’t know if that’s my path, Hallie. It’s your path, I can see it. I don’t know for me.”

“And I understand that. I’m just asking you to open your heart to the possibility.”

She gave her a look, and at last promised, “I’ll think about it. Just like I said in the interview.”

“That’s all I ask.”

Corey’s phone lit up with a text on the coffee table, and she frowned as she leaned forward to read it. Currently, it was three-fifteen in the morning. Who would be texting her this late?

It was Ace.

Can’t sleep. I’m sorry. I could see you were embarrassed and I couldn’t stop talking, and then I tried to kiss you, and I’m fuckin’ sorry, Corey. I really don’t understand myself.

It felt honest. She pursed her lips against an empty smile and texted him back. Everything is okay! I’m great. No worries. Send.

Empty-feeling texts. I get it. You’re mad.

Not mad, Ace. Just tired of being the shelter-girl, you know?Send.

You’re so much more than that. You just have shitty taste in men, lol

She scrunched up her face and texted back. I’ll grow out of that someday, but not today. Send. She took a selfie of her and Hallie on the couch and sent it to him. You’re interrupting girls’ night. Send.

So sorry. Your ice cream is melting. You looked pretty tonight in your sexy clothes, but you look even prettier in your pajamas. I was bummed I didn’t get to see you eat chicken wings, extra sauce. A picture came through of him laying on a bed with dark brown sheets, and he had no shirt on. He wore a silver chain necklace with some sort of pendant, but she couldn’t make it out. He looked like a man who would have forty-thousand followers on social media just based on thirst-trap pictures. Of course he wasn’t into her.

“He’s messing with you, isn’t he?” Hallie asked.

“That’s what boys do,” she muttered, texting him back. You like to play with my head. Goodnight, Ace. Send.

Sleep good, Corey.