Jason figured he was doing pretty well under the circumstances. He’d smashed three plates and screwed up two orders, but one of those was completely understandable because Bobbyalwayshad ribs on a Thursday. Always being every Thursday for the last two years except, apparently, today.
Those were three plates and two orders more than he would usually have a problem with, but given that he had a sort-of, maybe, kind-of date with a guy who looked like he’d walked out of the pages ofGQ, that was perfectly reasonable. And he’d finally remembered to add the seasoning to the mac and cheese. Most people who’d ordered it hadn’t noticed the lack, he was sure.
The last hour, the time between two and three o’clock, when the orders were only trickling in and he was prepping for the evening meals, was the hardest. Nerves writhed in his stomach—dread mixed with excitement.
He knew how bad an idea it was to meet Riley this afternoon. It would rake up all his longings and dreams again, only for him to be devastated when nothing came of it. But he also knew that if he didn’t at least try, he’d always wonder what might have been.
At last, it was almost three, and Jason cleared his station and went to the tiny alcove which contained the staff lockers. He stripped out of his t-shirt and pulled on the dark green button-down he’d decided on after hours of agonizing.
He wasn’t sure if it was hope or terror that had his fingers trembling slightly as he tucked it into his jeans, the pair Jesse had insisted he wear. If Jesse thought he had a nice ass, then maybe he should make sure Riley could see it.
But no one tucked in their shirt unless they were going to church, did they? He yanked it loose again and turned his back to the mirror next to the lockers, craning his neck until he could just about see his ass. The shirt obscured it a bit, but it wasn’t so long it hid everything. It would do. Probably. He hoped.
He checked his hair in the mirror and grinned at himself to make sure nothing had gotten stuck between his teeth when he’d been tasting various dishes. As he looked at his reflection, he stared for a while longer than he’d meant to. He didn’t know how he’d reached this age without ever going on a date. He didn’t want to spend his life alone, yet somehow it had always been easier to retreat than to put himself out there.
He’d tried to resign himself to the idea that the pack was enough for him. But he wanted to matter to someone. He wanted to love someone and have them love him before anyone else. And here he was, pinning his hopes on a guy who wouldn’t be staying and hadn’t even asked Jason out himself. God, he was a loser.
He jerked from his thoughts as the door pushed open, the sound of laughter and conversation floating through from the diner.
“Jason, honey?” Sam called. “There’s someone waiting for you.”
He slammed his locker closed and hurried out.Damn.He was late. The slightly worried look on Sam’s face smoothed out when she saw him, and she stepped fully into the kitchen, letting the door close behind her.
“Now I get what was going on with you today,” she said, blocking his path just long enough to give him a look. “You’ve been mooning all shift. Go on—have a nice time. And if that boy gives you trouble, tell him he’ll have to deal with me.”
She gave his arm a quick squeeze. “Also, any more smashed plates? Coming out of your paycheck.”
Her teasing relaxed him slightly. He took a deep breath and walked out into the diner.
RILEY
Riley drummed his fingers on the table and glanced around once again. Still no sign of Jason, and he was beginning to wonder if he’d been stood up. Maybe word had gotten around that he’d been asking questions. Had Matt Urban warned the townspeople away from Riley? Surely Urban wouldn’t worry about some travel writer taking a tour of the town. Not unless he was hiding secrets. And if he were, what would he be willing to do to protect them? A shiver of unease ran down Riley’s spine.
He glanced around. No one was watching him, and no one here looked like they were a shifter. Most people were just concentrating on their food, except for a loud gaggle of women who’d dragged three tables together and were laughing like they were three martinis in already. The volume ratcheted up whenever they looked in his direction.
When it had gotten to nearly ten after and there was still no sign of Jason, he asked the diner’s owner, Sam, to see if he was around. He’d started chatting to her over lunch, and to his sparse but growing hoard of facts he’d been able to add that “Turner” was Jesse Turner, Urban’s boyfriend, who’d only been in the area a couple of months.
Riley would need to wait till he was back at the motel and assured of privacy before he could do more in-depth research. Courtesy ofThe Daily Sentinel’scontacts, he had backdoor ways into various official databases that might be able to tell him something more about Jesse Turner, which might in turn lead him to the identity of other pack members. And then, he’d be able to find out which of them besides Jesse had joined the pack recently.
Implausible as it was that a legendary Argent wolf had appeared from nowhere, it was even more implausible that Urban had counted one among his pack for very long. If he had, he’d have used it already, made his move to be elected Leader of the Shifter National Council. And once he had that sewn up, who knew what the future would hold, with all shifters united behind someone who had an Argent at his side? No, this needed to be exposed and quickly, before irreparable harm was done to shifter and human relations.
All thoughts crashed to a halt as he looked up to find Jason standing in front of him, dusky pink touching his tanned cheeks.
Riley swallowed. It was either that or stare at Jason’s mouth like a creep. God, he looked good. Curls like he hadn’t quite bothered to tame them, and dark eyes that made him look like some Byronic hero. And those jeans—Goddamn,those jeans did things to him that should be illegal, hugging his legs and his crotch in just the right way and all the right places.
“Hey,” Riley said, aiming for breezy and landing somewhere just short of dazed. “You clean up well.”
Jason blinked, then smiled. Not flirtatious, not coy—just... soft. Shy.
It hit Riley like a sucker punch. He’d expected cockiness and banter, something he could spar with. Instead, Jason looked like he didn’t know what to do with attention, like it didn’t happen often.
“Tour of the town?” Riley said, dragging himself back to the present. Before he made more of a fool of himself.
“Where do you want to start?” Jason asked.
Riley figured he should get points for not replying “Your bedroom.”
“Wherever you want,” he said instead, and hoped Jason got the hint.
