“So no biting?”
Zane waggled his eyebrows as he stole Koa’s orange juice. “Not unless you ask ni—”
“Finish that sentence,” I growled through clenched teeth, “and you’ll be healing your kneecaps again.”
#
The cards slapped against the duvet with more force than necessary. Zane’s tell. He always got aggressive when holding shitty hands.
“Fold,” Koa muttered, tossing his cards toward the center of our makeshift poker ring.
His gaze kept darting to Seri, who sat cross-legged between him and me, absently twirling a curl with one finger. So far, we’d learned a few things about her. She turned nineteen on March seventh, had found Brumous about nine weeks ago, and King Julian Hemming told her that he was almost five months old.
Everything else was lost in jaw-popping yawns that increased by the minute. I tracked the flutter of her lashes, a half-second longer each blink, and she always checked on Brumous when she jerked awake.
I didn’t understandwhy. The last thing a dire wolf pup needed was protection. Besides, the animal hadn’t moved from his spot on thefloor and the blanket he’d claimed, his curious eyes tracking the cards like they were prey. His ears perked up every time one of us made a move, his tail thumping against the floor in excitement. Every now and then, he’d let out a little huff or whine, like he was trying to join in on the fun.
It was surprising to see a dire so calm, especially at his age. He should have been in full zoomie mode six or seven times a day.
Then again, he should have ripped Zane’s hand off earlier, too,I reminded myself.Dires aren’t known for their table manners. Quite the opposite, in fact.
“Three jacks,” I announced, spreading my cards just as her temple grazed my bicep.
“Bullshit.” Zane groaned, hurling his hand at Koa’s chest. “Your shuffling sucks.”
“Stop whining. Drink your juice box, baby.”
The insult sparked their usual squabble, but my world narrowed to the featherlight pressure against my arm. Seri’s cheek against my sleeve.
How absurd.
A few hours ago she’d flinched when Koa reached for her arm. Now she leaned into me like I was part of the furniture.
This shouldn’t be happening. Not so soon. Not after everything she’d been through. Trust like this, unspoken and unearned, should’ve been impossible for her. But here she was, letting herself drift against me, her warmth seeping into my skin like a secret I wasn’t deserving to know.
She probably didn’t even realize what it meant, what it cost her to let her guard down like this.
ButIdid.
Koa froze mid-retort, nostrils flaring. His eyes locked onto the crown of her head now resting against my shoulder.
“Aw, look at Cas playing teddy bear.” Zane followed his stare and smirked.
“Shut your mouth unless you want it stapled closed.” My growl lacked conviction. Speaking too forcefully might jostle her.
“Not teddy bear.” The slurred words brushed my elbow as her fingers curled into the blanket at her waist.
All three of us stilled.
“All right, this I gotta hear.” Zane recovered first. “What is he, then, chickadee? Ogre? Troll? Foul-mouth dictator—”
“Simmy.” Her voice was soft and drowsy as her head tilted closer. “He’s Simmy.”
I stiffened, my entire body going rigid. My brain short-circuited, the word ricocheting in my head like a bullet.
The room temperature dropped twenty degrees.
What. The hell. Did she call me?
