“Nothing nearly as exciting as home, it would seem.”
I grab for a container the same time Kasen does and we both jerk our hands back so fast that I nearly send my chair toppling backward. All the while, Scarlett’s grin splits her face. Using my fork, I push it in his direction to help himself first, mildly debating using the utensil to stab myself in the eye for an excuse to leave the table.
She waggles her eyebrows at me. “Bright side, one more day and you’re off for the weekend and can join us.”
I was wrong about plenty of things. She’ll be fine. I should just tell her.
Her face falls a bit as she turns to Kasen. “Oh, wait, I’m taking up all of your time during the week. You probably have much more exciting things already planned with your friends.”
His nostrils flare. “Not at all.”
She probes, “But won’t people start talking if you’re here all of the time?”
Instantly, he scoffs. “My job isn’t nine to five anymore. Personal guard means odd hours and being on call. The ones that know about you will assume it’s an extra security measure, and the ones that don’t, don’t have access to the top floor or knowledge of what their boss might be involved in. They’ll know I was pulled from general security to work directly under Malcolm, and that position would require a confidentiality agreement. Let them spin their theories.”
“So it wouldn’t be weird if you spent the night?” she asks.
The two of us exchange a heavy look of dread as I reluctantly admit, “No.”
You’d think I told the woman I was taking her to a tropical island getaway with the way she lights up, turning to Kasen. “So what do you say, up for a slumber party?”
The poor guy breaks into a cold sweat. “Um, I mean, don’t you think this is a little sudden?”
She eats up his fear like it’s her favorite treat. “Don’t sell yourself short, Kase. I spent one day with you and love you to pieces. Just pretend you’re talking to me and you’ll be fine. Don’t let the suit fool you, Malcolm’s notthatintimidating.”
His eyes widen in panic alongside her declaration, and the situation is so ridiculous that a startled laugh bursts out before I can stop it. Scarlett latches on to the slip and I groan, realizing I’ve condemned us both.
She finishes off her last bite and fakes a dramatic yawn, getting to her feet. “You guys are so high strung that it puts evenmyanxiety to shame. I don’t know about you two, but I’m exhausted. How about I put off cleaning up until tomorrow and we take it easy, watch a movie?”
Kasen sends me a pleading look, in over his head and sinking deeper by the minute. Ultimately though, I still stand by my early sentiment, that dropping the bomb on her right now will shatter the newfound happiness that she’s finally found. And really, easing her into the idea of what it’s like to be in a pack, giving her this chance to acclimate to a different dynamic, is only a small step away from friends to lovers.
Sometimes being part of a pack means taking one for the team.
“A fantastic idea, love.”
She smiles, turning to wait for Kasen's vote. By his expression, I’d say he’s either contemplating throwing caution to the wind and kissing her, letting the chips fall where they may, or throwing himself out the window.
Gritting my teeth, I extend a hand, praying my voice doesn’t sound as wooden as it feels. “She’s right, it’ll be fun. We’ve built this up in our heads and the awkward tension needs to break sooner or later. Might as well rip off the bandage.”
He grunts, taking my offered hand up and the two of us head toward the couch with jerky steps. Scarlett rushes off, returning a minute later with the comforter stripped from her bed, tossing it across our laps. Flopping down on my free side, she nestles in under my arm and gets comfortable, passing the remote across my lap to Kasen.
“Here, why don’t you choose since I picked last time?” she offers.
As if he can read the directions of my thoughts, he puts on the most boring documentary that he can find, back ramrod straight beside me and eyes glued to the TV. It drones on monotonously for seemingly a lifetime until my eyes grow heavy, and I risk a glance out of the corner of my eye to see Scarlett beginning to nod off, but she continues to fight to stay awake.
His hand is so sweaty. If she could hurry the heck up and fall asleep already, that’d be swell.
But no, she holds on through this documentary and the next. And the next one. And the one after that.
