“You’re impossible,” I huff at him, but can’t hide my smile.
“You love it,” he says casually with a wave of his hand.
And the whole ride to Furs and Purrs, I try not to think of the word ‘love.’
I care for my scent matches, sure.
But love?
I’m not sure I remember what it means, or if I’m even capable of it anymore.
I had loved Justin, Aaron and Cody, yet I came to realize it was more of a friendly love.
My feelings for them didn’t burn in my chest like they do for Travis, Rowan, and Ryland.
And I still don’t know if I can even call these feelingslove.
The word is still spinning in my head when Rowan stops at the front door of the rescue and leans in to kiss me gently. “It’s nice to see you like this,” he murmurs against my lips.
I step back and tilt my head curiously.
“That wall,” he says. “There’s a wall behind your eyes, sometimes, when you look at us. Like you’re hiding a portion of yourself with little mental bricks you’ve built. And every time I see you, I try to take at least one down.”
I blink at him, silent.
“Today,” he says, searching my eyes, as if he can see what he’s describing, “all of them are gone. They’ve been gone for the last week.”
“I…” I swallow, “I don’t know what to say to that.”
I suddenly can’t breathe.
His grin is lopsided, as if he didn’t just strip me bare. “That’s okay.” Then, he presses a kiss to my forehead. “Your eyes are brighter like this.” Then, he takes off his black jacket and wraps it around my shoulders. “Have a good day, baby. We’ll see you tonight.”
I watch as Rowan heads back to his car, dumbfounded.
After a moment of staring, I gather my wits and enter the rescue.
Alvin is the first to greet me, flopping onto my feet and showing off his striped belly. Then, a whirlwind of chamomile and a flash of purple hair knock into me so hard I almost fall over.
“Oh, mygod! You’re back!” Maeve says, squeezing me tightly. “Oh, and you smellgood.” She inhales dramatically. “Like, flowers but also all this other good stuff. Yum.”
I pat her hair awkwardly. “Thanks?”
“Okay, Maeve, you can let her go now,” Piper laughs from behind the front counter. “Give the girl a chance to breathe.”
But Maeve’s joy makes me chuckle. “I missed you too, weirdo,” I murmur fondly. “But Piper said you two held the fort down.”
“Along with Mari. She’s here, by the way. She’s been asking about you all week.”
I groan. Mari is worse than Rylee with the way she’s obsessed with everyone’s love life.
In reality though, I think it’s because she doesn’t have her own partner. She’s an older Omega, and I’m not sure what her dating life has been like.
Maybe she’ll let us play matchmaker for her one day.
A new cat-sized blanket is spread out on the front counter as well—this time dark grey with little white cat faces embroidered on it. It’s covered in Alvin’s fur, which tells me he’s been spending a considerable amount of time on it.
“More of these?” I murmur, running my finger over the fabrics. “They’re such good quality.”
