A relieved breath escaped her, and she disappeared into the bedroom.
The door shut and locked behind her, and I slumped.
She reallywasgoing to reject me.
I was fucked.
three
ZOE
My heart beat rapidlyas I scrubbed dirt and sweat out of my hair with shampoo that smelled deliciously masculine. While I scrubbed, I tried to come up with a way to tell Connor the truth about my plan.
I know you don’t want a mate, but I need one.
That sounded as selfish as it was. Not great.
My parents are going to destroy my life if I don’t have proof that I’m married.
That made me sound like a kid who didn’t know how to fend for myself.
I need us to look married so I’m not forced to spend my life with a jackass who’s twice my age.
Somehow, that was even worse.
I’d prefer just to keep the whole situation a secret from him, but I’d need to introduce him to my parents in the very near future.
And a large part of my plan was very…public.
Yeah.Publicwas the right word for it.
Soonwas right up there withpublic.
After the way Connor had coached me through shifting—and saved my life while he was at it—without even realizing that his words were sexual, I was even more positive that I was an awful human being.
He was going to bepissed.
Hopefully, his sense of humor made it a little easier.
I sighed up at the showerhead.
I was terrible.
My friends were going to kill me.
Closing my eyes, I stood under the water a little longer.
My legs were shaky. The rest of me was too. My stomach growled loudly.
I was going to have to get out and face the music. The sooner I ripped off the bandaid, the better chance I had that Connor wouldn’t hate me too much. If we were going to be permanently connected, less hate would be preferable.
So, I finished washing my hair and got out.
Drying off took less time than I hoped. Connor’s brush and a few hair ties sat on the countertop, but I wasn’t going to use them without permission. His hair had to be a source of pride for him. It was the kind of hair women envied. Or paid a shit-ton of money to have.
Mine was never going to look that way.
I’d given up on that kind of life a long time ago. I’d be lucky if I managed just to make it through the next few weeks without losing everything I had spent my life working for.
