11. Cedric

Oh no. Big mistake.

I knew it as soon as I headed in for the kiss. His unique scent filled my nostrils, and I should have pulled back. I didn't.

I expected this skin to be rough when I swept my lips over his cheek. It wasn't.

I assumed his scruff would scratch my skin. It didn't.

I thought I'd go in for the thank-you kiss and be done with it. I couldn't.

Instead, I wanted to place my lips on his, to savor his taste and to have that bear-shifter scent wrap itself around me, never letting go. My body trembled as I wrestled with the friendly kiss on the cheek that had become so much more—to me. Gage, though, might've been ready to fight me off as I got in his personal space.

His warm breath billowed over my ear and his breathing ramped up, the speed matching my own. I tried to pull back, but I wanted more. More what? A kiss, yes. To see him naked? Done that. To have him inside me? Oh yeah. For him to be at my side for the rest of my life? I thought that was a yes.

Using all of my strength, I tore myself away from Gage, not daring to check out his expression but also wanting to see if it reflected what I was feeling.

"I… sorry. I just…" Look up, I told myself. Look into his eyes. If they're empty of affection, that will be your answer. But if there was a flicker of what I was feeling, there was hope.

Lifting my head, I searched his expression, hoping my feelings were reciprocated. Gage's eyes were wide, but he hadn't opened the car door or leaped out. He didn't wipe my saliva off his cheek. His chest was still heaving and his lips were parted. He tugged his ear, something I'd not witnessed previously.

What I should have done was tell him how I was feeling. But this was Gage. The man who was horrified when told he and I were fated to be together. The guy who lived alone in the woods and didn't plan on changing that. The person who'd become my friend and taught me not only about the forest but about humanity.

But I took the easy way out. "Ummm… I'll see you soon."

He nodded. There was no indication he wondered when I'd be back. I was aiming for a month, but that might be extended. Gage had neither a phone nor a computer, so I couldn't get in touch with him. And I was pretty sure the Riverford post office didn't deliver mail to his cabin.

There would just be silence. I liked silence when we were together, but not if we were miles apart.

"Bye." I stood on the sidewalk, watching him drive away, the red of his tail lights fading the further he drove, and when he turned a corner, I wiped my hand over my eyes, wanting to rid myself of my tears. This was silly. Four weeks. It was nothing.

The next morning, Reed helped with my bags, and as we sped to the airport, we talked of work, house renovation, and selling my apartment. Neither of us mentioned Gage. I skirted around the subject, speaking of the house I was buying and my plans for the kitchen and bathroom, hoping Reed would bring him up, but he didn't.

The flight home felt like I was going to my doom. I'd have to face Adrian and Jace, put my apartment on the market, pack, toss, and donate and all the paraphernalia that came with moving, while communicating with the lawyer in Riverford about the house.

Reed had joked he was sure Mr. Lucas had been a lawyer in his early life, but the elderly man poo-pooed that suggestion, saying, "I'm sure I would have remembered."

Standing at the entrance to my apartment that had always felt like my safe space, it was now just four walls and memories, memories that were tainted with heartbreak.

Without bothering to turn on the lights, I showered and fell into bed, setting my alarm so I could get into the office early before anyone else. Best to get my work wound up, starting in the morning.

I checked my phone for messages. Mrs. Ambrose had texted saying they missed me. She added that Gage had been there mowing the lawn. Harry sent a message about the upcoming festival. He also said Gage had accepted the part-time job. There were a couple of messages from Reed about work, and he noted Gage had been reluctant to leave the office today.

Despite their non-stop meddling, I grinned and hugged the phone to my chest. Their handprints were all over my back as they tried to push me and Gage together. I should've been mourning the end of my engagement to Adrian, and yet my mind kept saying, "Adrian who?" Being in Riverford had wiped away some of the anguish that should have taken years to get over.

Maybe the town councilors should use it in their marketing campaign. "Come to Riverford and leave your heartache behind."

I thought of Gage and how he suffered the loss of his parents at the hands of human hunters. How had he not turned bitter and wanted to hurt our kind? But I had my answer. Despite his loss and sadness, he didn't want revenge. Just a life lived away from anyone who could cause him more pain.

Though I expected to toss and turn throughout the night, I slept until woken by the damned alarm, and I strode into the office an hour later, armed with a huge coffee. Jace's desk had been cleared. Maybe he was now Adrian's assistant. Goodie.

Having already contacted Dirk, the realtor I bought the apartment from and informing him I was selling, I was immersed in making a list of what I had to hand over, either to my staff or to the incoming marketing manager, and filling in forms for Dirk, when Adrian strode in and towered over my desk.

"You can't be serious about going to that podunk town. You'll ruin your career."

I took my time, closing my laptop and glancing up at him. His features were twisted and my belly roiled. Did he always have that squirrelly expression? It was off-putting.

I ignored his question, which was none of his business. "Did you want something?"

"Why are you leaving? I broke up with Jace, and he took a job at a firm across town."

"What Jace has or hasn't done has nothing to do with me." He wasn't a good assistant, so I wouldn't miss him during these two weeks. I was happy not to hear his name mentioned, and next Friday, I would never see Adrian again, and I was cheering.

Out with the old, in with the new.

"Reed put you up to this, didn't he?" He sneered and leaned over me so I could see the remains of his breakfast stuck in his teeth. Gross!

I chose my words carefully and stood up. Adrian was about my height, and we stood on either side of my desk. "Reed is still your boss, correct?" I moved to the filing cabinet and pulled open the top drawer. "I would be careful how you refer to him."

"Are you blackmailing me, you sniveling little?—"

"Stop!" Was I? No, I wouldn't mention Adrian to Reed, but it might've seemed that way. And if so, good. "I am pointing out who is your boss and mine. If you have a problem with staffing, take it up with him."

I opened my office door, but he stood his ground before huffing and storming out. How many more encounters would I have over the next ten days?

Each night when the office emptied, I stayed behind. There was nothing waiting for me at home except packing, and I'd hired movers who would do everything. Other than me getting rid of some stuff, they would pack it all.

I avoided Adrian, but he seemed to get in my face whenever I left my office. If I went to the water cooler or the lunch room or spoke to my staff, he was there, fuming. I stifled a giggle ‘cause I wanted to ask him if he was a dragon shifter, like Mr. Lucas. I half expected smoke to shoot out his nostrils.

His getting in my face was more annoying than scary. He was a coward who used bluster and fury to make people shrivel in his presence, something I had apparently overlooked when we were together. Had I been so desperate to get married and have a family that I ignored it? Or had me leaving the company triggered his mean side he'd kept hidden? Either way, I was glad to be rid of him.

It was toward the end of my last week when I was on top of my work, the apartment had been snapped up because of its location, and I might be back in Riverford in under the four weeks I'd planned, when the company receptionist, Rueben, hurried up, confiding there was someone to see me.

There were no meetings in my diary, and with only two days remaining, no one was consulting me about future projects.

But there was a whiff of something on the receptionist that sent my mind back to Riverford. It couldn't be Reed. This was still his company. He could just walk right in.

I walked slowly to the office lobby and the scent grew stronger, and I quickened my pace. My brain was playing tricks on me.

It couldn't be.