“Hey.”
Cole about jumped out of his skin. Of course, Logan took him by surprise. Whirling around to face him, Cole tried to calm his racing heart. “Do you always sneak up on people?”
Logan’s smile didn’t do anything to quell Cole’s nerves. “I didn’t sneak. It’s not my fault you were too caught up watching the ducks to notice my arrival.”
Whatever.
“Shall we walk and talk?” Logan asked, gesturing to the almost empty park. “Might as well make the most of it while we’re here.”
Cole automatically looked around, scanning the park for possible eavesdroppers.
Frowning, Logan copied Cole’s actions. “What are we looking for?”
“What?”
“You seem to be searching for something.”
Cole felt the blush creep up his neck to his cheeks. He hadn’t realised he’d been doing it. “I um...”
“Were you checking for shifters? Worried someone might overhear what we talk about?”
“No, I just—” Just what? Cole couldn’t think of a convincing lie, and why should he have to? “Yes, actually.”
“Not that anything we talk about today is a secret—there’s packs doing the exact same thing all over London—but I can tell you that no shifters are within earshot at the moment. Of course, that could change at any time.” Logan looked amused if anything, and Cole prickled.
“I get that it’s not something you ever have to worry about, but those of us who are human have to—”Fuck.Was he really about to tell a member of the McKillan pack that he and his friends were careful around shifters? Like they had something to hide?You fucking idiot, Cole.
Logan tilted his head to one side. “Have to what?”
“Nothing. I just like to keep my affairs private, that’s all.” He gestured to the path they were on. “Shall we?”
Falling into step beside Cole as they walked, Logan glanced around them. “It’s nice here. I don’t often get out to this part of the city.”
Cole grunted.
“What?”
“Nothing.” He was probably too busy spying on people or whatever it was he did for the McKillan pack. “Are you always the recruiter?” Not what he’d meant to ask, but it was as good a place as any to start.
“Sometimes.” Logan sighed. “We take it in turns.” He shot Cole a sideways glance. “Not everyone likes to do it. I volunteer.”
“Why?”
“Because I remember what it was like to be human and scared of what I didn’t understand.”
Cole wanted to scoff—he understood everything just fine thanks—but he refrained, curiosity getting the better of him. “You went through this choosing crap?”
He raised an eyebrow at Cole’s choice of words but shook his head. “No. My parents joined the McKillan pack before the shifters came into power. They’ve been friends with Michael since uni.”
Cole stumbled over nothing, Logan’s declaration startling him.Jesus.McKillan himself was a family friend?
Logan seemed not to notice, or he chose to ignore it. “They were staunch supporters of the cause.”
He used were, not are, and Cole wondered if that was intentional. Not that he was about to ask.
“Both parents took the bite as soon as Michael offered it,” Logan added, kicking a stray pebble in their path.
“What about you?”
