“You still worried about messing things up with her?” Zane asked.
“Shouldn’t I be?” He slipped his phone in his pocket. “I don’t have what anyone would call an impressive track record when it comes to relationships or dealing with a werewolf going through her first change. Throw in the fact that Selena’s change is coming on faster than normal and the small issue of us likely being soul mates, and there are about a dozen different ways this could go bad. I’d prefer if that didn’t happen.”
“Then don’t let it happen.”
Brooks snorted as he picked up his beer and stood. “That’s the best advice you can give?”
Zane shrugged. “As complicated as you’d like to make this, it’s not. Selena isThe Onefor you. It’s bloody obvious. As far as the rest… You’re a good person, a good cop, and one of the most capable alpha werewolves in the Pack. You’ll know when the time is right to tell her.”
Brooks wasn’t so sure of that. “Catch you later.”
Turning, Brooks headed toward Selena’s table, following her scent like a homing beacon.
* * *
His breath caught in his throat when he saw Selena. She was sitting on the inside curve of the booth, the sexy red dress she wore showing off a perfect amount of cleavage. Becca sat beside her, next to a trim guy with brown hair and glasses. They didn’t see him right away, but Selena did. Or maybe she picked up his scent. Regardless, her eyes met his, and she smiled.
Brooks slipped into the booth and slid across, then leaned in and gave her a kiss. He’d intended it to be a light peck on the cheek since they were in public, but Selena turned her head and captured his lips with hers, her mouth opening and demanding he do this right. He kissed her back, immediately hardening in his jeans at the taste of her tongue. Damn, she tasted even better than she did last night. How was that possible?
Becca let out a polite cough, reminding him where they were. Even though it was the last thing his body wanted to do, Brooks broke the kiss and pulled away. While Becca was grinning from ear to ear, her date was nearly blushing.
“Jayden, this is Scott Llewellyn,” Selena said to introduce them. “Scott, Jayden Brooks.”
Brooks reached across the table, offering his hand. “Nice to meet you.”
Scott took his hand, giving it a quick shake, then adjusted his glasses. If that didn’t clue Brooks in that the guy was nervous as hell, the rapid heartbeat and unusually fast breathing would have. At first, Brooks thought it was because he was a cop. Some people got nervous around law enforcement. But then he caught the covert look Scott gave Becca and realized the guy was sweating the blind date.
Brooks’s suspicions were confirmed a moment later when the waitress showed up with drinks. Both Selena and Becca had some kind of fruity drinks with umbrellas, but Scott had a Long Island iced tea, half of which he chugged while the server was standing there. The woman took one look at him and murmured something about bringing him another one. Brooks winced. This had the potential to go bad quickly.
“What do you do for a living, Jayden?” Scott asked.
Brooks hesitated. He hadn’t been uncomfortable around the opposite sex since he was fourteen, but he still remembered what it was like trying to look cool in front of an attractive girl only to have some big jock mess everything up.
“I work for the city,” he finally said, figuring that was a safe answer. “Pushing paperwork mostly. Pretty boring job to be truthful.”
Selena and Becca looked at him funny but didn’t say anything.
Scott looked just as surprised. “You’re…um…kind of big to push papers. I would have figured you for a job that was more…physical.”
“Nah.” Brooks took a sip of beer. “What about you?”
“I’m a tax accountant.” Scott laughed. “I live to fill out forms, so I feel your pain carrying box after box of Xerox paper to the copy machine all day.”
Selena gently squeezed his thigh, and Brooks glanced over to see her smiling. She mouthed a silentthank you, then they both went back to listening to Scott talk about tax preparation. Filing season was coming up, and he was positively giddy with anticipation over the new tax laws. Becca genuinely seemed to enjoy the conversation, which boded well for their relationship.
Scott slammed the rest of his Long Island iced tea and started on the next one, all but ignoring Brooks and Selena and focusing completely on Becca. The redhead must have thought the conversation was going well, because she gave Selena a subtle nod.
“Jayden and I are going to check out the dance floor,” Selena said, nudging him out of the booth. “We’ll be back in a little bit.”
But instead of heading for the dance floor, Selena led Brooks around it, heading for an empty highboy cocktail table. It was close enough for Selena to keep an eye on Becca and her date but far enough away to give them some privacy.
Out of the corner of his eye, Brooks saw Zane standing at another highboy table, drinking small sips from his beer and casually chatting up the two women who’d bought the drinks earlier. They gazed at Zane like they were hypnotized. That damn British accent of his did it every time.
“It was cool of you to downplay your job like that for Scott,” Selena said. “How did you know that would make him relaxed enough to talk?”
Brooks chuckled. “Believe it or not, I’ve been in his shoes once or twice in my life. I figured he could use any help he could get. First dates can be tough.”
Her eyes sparkled. “Was our first date tough?”
