“Not as much as I’d like,” Dorian says, making my cheeks scorch with a blush. “What’s up?”
“Thought our guest might like some clothes that haven’t been mauled by a feral animal.”
“The alpha’s possessive,” I inform Seamus. He gazes at me, a smile gracing his lips.
He looks back at Dorian. “Looks like your wolf might not be the only one. Anyhow, I was out to run some errands, so I stopped by to grab some clothes for you. Do you like skirts?”
I shake my head. “Impractical. I like to move and sit how I want.”
“Good thing I got options, then.” He hands averylarge shopping bag to Dorian, who glances down at it with furrowed brows.
“Are you trying to buy my affection?” I ask mildly, raising my eyebrows.
Seamus snorts. “No, love. You’re not a girl whose affection can be bought, are you? I’m just being civilized, since we’ll be roommates for a bit. You play nice, we play nice, yeah?”
Sounds good to me.“Yup. I’m not high maintenance—give me music and leave me alone, and I won’t make any problems. Unless you try to keep me away from my friends.” I frown. “Is my car still parked at the mountain? I’ll need it to go see them.”
“I’ll take you to campus in a bit, you can see your roommates then,” Dorian tells me. “Seamus brought your car back this morning, didn’t he?”
Seamus smiles. “I did say errands. I also stopped by a local vet’s office and picked up some antibiotics for our sickly kitten. Already gave her the first dose.”
“How did you know about the sick kitten?” I wonder.
“Dorian texted me about it last night. Figured I’d kill three birds with one stone this morning and earn myself some brownie points with you.”
“Oh. Thank you. Back to the topic, I wasn’t referring to my human friends, I mean my wolf pack and fox skulk. Both expect me to make my rounds regularly.”
“We’ll talk about it later,” Dorian says. “Thanks, Seamus. We’ll be down to breakfast in a bit.” Seamus walks away, whistling a merry tune, and Dorian closes the door.
“You guys have a kitchen, right?” I question. “I usually home-bake treats and bring them to my furry friends. I also occasionally bring treats for my human friends, too.” Cara and Valerieloveit when I cook and bake for them; skills I learned from the only positive role model I’ve ever had in my life.
“You said you’re not high maintenance,” Dorian remarks drily.
“I’mnot. The animals I happen to be attached to are. And my roommates do very well when bribed with baked treats.” I tilt my head as I consider him. “I could probably win you guys over with my cookies, too. Or a home-cooked meal, which I’ll bet you don’t get often.”
Dorian appears mildly surprised. “You cook?”
“Yeah. I like cooking and baking; it’s soothing. It helps me with my anxiety, and it makes people happy, which gives me a fucking break from all the negativity everyoneconstantlyemanates.”
Dorian blinks slowly. “Okay, I’ll see about the kitchen, food, and your pets. For now, get dressed. We’ll grab breakfast on our way to campus.”
Dorian agrees to stay in the car while I go into my dorm building. I have about half an hour before my first class, so I’ll need to be quick. When I unlock the front door to my apartment-like dorm room, I spot Cara sitting on the small living room couch, scrolling through her phone.
She looks up at my entrance, and her cinnamon-colored eyes blaze as she glares at me. “Youbitch,” she says. “Where the fuck were you? Do you know how worried I’ve been?”
Cara is the extrovert of our friend group. She isveryloud, extremely animated, and a little dramatic to boot. Born to a Brazilian model and an Italian businessman, Cara is absolutely stunning. She’s all long limbs and grace, standing several inches taller than me. She has black hair that’s currently swept into a bun, and the sort of breathtaking body and cleavage that leaves a line of drooling men wherever she goes.
“I sent a text,” I say.
“Oh, okay. It’s all good because yousent a text.” She scoffs. “Mira, your text said, and I quote,shit went down, I’m alright, I’ll see you tomorrow.Then you didn’t respond to my five texts!”
“You sent those five texts in the ten minutes you’ve been awake,” I point out calmly. I received them on my way here.
“Chill out, Car,” Valerie says, strolling out of her room with her backpack slung over her shoulder. She looks me over with ice-blue eyes, eyebrows raising. “New clothes?”
I glance down at the crème blouse and dark jeans I wear. Seamus has good style. “Yeah.”
“What happened?” Valerie queries, heading over to our small kitchenette and pouring herself a cup of coffee from the ancient coffee machine.
