The lurch in my stomach took me by surprise, but damn, that was kind of… hot. Knowing that Finley missed me too, even though he’d been such a different shifter lately, still took me by surprise.
Pretty Mate: I miss you both! But, as an aside, I heard that Slade has a lot of photos of me on his stalker wall. If you don’t mind googly eyes.
He hadn’t mentioned the prank even once, and I was done waiting for him to bring it up.
My heart beat a little faster as I waited for his response.
Slade: Oh, Snow. I will never share my stalker photos with anyone. They’re safe and sound. Just like you are.
Daddy-o: Yeah, that’s not creepy at all, brother. Emme probably feels completely comforted.
Slade: *shrugging emoji*
Pretty Mate: I’m totally calm and fine. I’m not even remotely scared of Scary Shifter. What’s the worst he could do.
I sent it and then immediately regretted challenging him like that.Idiot.
Slade: You forget I can see you via the cameras, Emmeline Anders. You can’t hide anything from me.
Leaning back on my bed, I flipped him off with both hands, and I wasn’t surprised to hear a ding.
Slade: I’m going to enjoy punishing the brat out of you, little mate. I’m going to enjoy it a lot.
And I was dead. Again.
Golden: You fuckers. You’re going to naked pack snuggle without us, and I honestly don’t love hockey enough to deal with this shit. *angry face emoji* This is goddess-be-damned unshifterly of you all, and I demand that you all stay in separate rooms until we return. *begging hands emoji*
Finley Grouchy Thornton: In completely related news, the game today is going to be very interesting as we think about you pack huddling without us. Hope I don’t lose control of my bear and kill a few opponents.
Golden: Is it bad that I kind of want to see that? It’s bad, isn’t it? Hey, no one chimed in and said it’s bad, so it’s probably fine.
Daddy-o: Our plane is fueled and ready. One more fucking word from you Kellan.
Daddy-o: Good luck with your game today.
Pretty Mate: You are both amazing, and I’m so proud of you. Kick their asses today.
Kellan sent back a bunch of kissing emojis, and Finley sent one single pink heart. I might have stared at that heart for far too long before I threw the phone on the side table and headed into the bathroom to shower and get ready for the day.
When I was dressed in jeans, a shirt from Kellan that hung past my ass, and a hoodie from Finley, because he wasn’t here to see me needing a hit of his scent, I ambled down the stairs and headed for the kitchen.
I heard voices before I entered the room, and wasn’t surprised to find Hunter, Warrick, Cora, Slade, and Kassidy eating breakfast and chatting away. I eyeballed the pile of breakfast sandwiches before I greeted anyone, counting to make sure they had left me enough.
At Cora’s snort of laughter, I glanced her way, and she wiggled her brows. “You owe me a hundred bucks,” she said to her mate, and Warrick grinned even as he grumbled and slapped the note into her hand. “Should have known better than to bet on Emme not counting the sandwiches.”
“I’ve made no secret of my priorities at breakfast,” I said with a shrug.
Kassidy jumped to her feet, and I was struck by how gorgeous Hunter’s sister looked in her skinny jeans and tight teal sweater. That family’s genetics were exceptional, if you discounted thepsychopathic tendencies of their father. “We’ve been waiting for you, Emme. It’s girl’s day. We don’t want you wallowing without half your pack, so we thought we’d go out shopping.”
I paused with a sandwich halfway toward my mouth, my gaze automatically finding Hunter, and then Slade, both of whom wore neutral expressions. “You two are letting me have a girls’ day? What? With no security or anything?”
Hunter’s lips twitched, and I had to remind myself that we had company, and it was not in my best interest to climb that damn alpha like a tree. “We arranged for one of the smaller stores to open just for you three. We’ll wait outside, but you’ll have a free run to shop and hang out with your friends.”
Now it was my turn to smirk. “Like I’m a child and you’re dropping me off at my friend’s house to play?”
Slade placed his hands on the bench, and I swear he made the massive expanse of marble look small under his hold. “Exactly like that, Snow. Only this is an adult playdate and will include wine.”
“That’s how they got me here,” Kassidy joked, reaching for another sandwich, undeterred by the stink eye I shot her way. She was a badass alpha and could hoover down as much food as the males. Lucky, I liked her.
