I nodded, ignoring that jealous tingle again. Bert was just his friend. I had no reason to be envious.
Right?
Edgar tilted his head. As I'd grown to notice, he was incredibly astute. “Mel, is everything all right? You went quiet once I mentioned my friend.”
I plastered on a smile, although I was sure Edgar would notice it was fake.
“Y-yeah! I mean…” I sighed. “Sorry, it's really stupid of me. This friend of yours…”
I paused. How was I supposed to word my question without sounding like a desperate weirdo?
But before I could puzzle a sentence together, Edgar's head rolled back as he let out a belly laugh. It was so loud that the local crows in the nearby trees cawed and took off from their branches.
“Oh, Mel! You're not really wondering if I'm romantically interested in Bert, are you?” he asked, wiping a shiny translucent tear from his eye.
Wait. He could cry?
...What other bodily functions did he have?
Get your mind out of the gutter, Mel!
“Erm... Sort of,” I admitted.
Edgar's expression softened. “No, Mel, of course not. That thought hasnevercrossed my mind, trust me. Dating Bert would be like dating a rock. No offence to him.”
A wave of relief crashed into me. I let out a sigh I didn't know I'd been holding. I shouldn't have cared so much about Edgar's love life, but for some reason, I did. It was odd that I couldn't stop myself from being invested. We were practically strangers, and yet I felt deeply comfortable with Edgar—more than anyone else I'd ever met.
It didn't matter to me that he was an alpha, or even a phantasm. I liked him forhim.I wondered if he liked me, too.
As we got closer to the cemetery's front gate, I stiffened. Did Edgar know about the security guard? And if so, could the man see him?
Just as I opened my mouth to ask, Edgar said, “I'll be right back,” and flew up to the man.
“Bert! Look!” Edgar cried happily as he pointed at me.
My jaw dropped.
Thatwas Bert? Edgar's only other friend was the beta security guard I'd met earlier? The relief I felt doubled. Bert was a nice guy, but I couldn't imagine any romantic chemistry between him and Edgar.
Bert narrowed his eyes at me, then looked at Edgar in confusion. “What's going on? Is this human bothering you? I knew I shouldn't have let in one of those urban explorers…”
My heart sank. Was Bert about to throw me out?
But Edgar didn't let him take a single step towards me. He scoffed loudly. “What? No, no, you have it all wrong! This is my new dear friend, Mel.”
I noticed with a flutter in my chest that he called me “dear”, but didn't use that term when addressing Bert. Ithadto be out of politeness, right? Otherwise why would he call me that?
“Your friend?” Bert echoed. His brows raised as he looked at me with wary respect. “So... he didn't break into your house and try anything funny?”
“Oh, yes, he did break in,” Edgar said, nodding confidently. “And his human contraptions were very funny. I found them amusing.”
I blushed. Edgar didn't make a good case for me in his friend's eyes, but he blew it in such a sweet way. Typical Edgar.
Bert shot me a raised brow. “I thought you were making a documentary.”
“I was!” I exclaimed.
Edgar thrust himself between us like a physical barrier—except he was translucent and either of us could've walked right through him.
