“Thanks,” I said.
She swiped the app on her phone and headed to the door while typing in our location. “It’ll just be a minute. You good?” she asked over her shoulder.
My gaze narrowed. Her arms were empty. The little witch had somehow lost my coat in the last two minutes. She was a tricky one, and it only made me more obsessed with her.
With a grunt, I turned back around and slid the boxes onto the counter. The teen cashier spluttered, but I ignored him. It only took a second to tune into my coat, and I found it tucked on a shelf behind a row of crescent moon-printed tank tops. Grinning, I slung it over my shoulder and then picked up the boxes again.
When I emerged from the shop, Juniper’s mouth thinned in annoyance as her gaze snagged on my coat.
“You’ll have to do better than that, little witch,” I said softly.
“It’s almost like you don’t want me to lose your coat and set you free,” she grumbled as the rideshare pulled up.
The driver opened the trunk, and I stashed the boxes before climbing into the seat beside Juniper. “I thought I was clear about that,” I said wryly.
Eyes the color of ocean depths narrowed at me.
“Maybe I like this arrangement,” I said.
“Why? Do you have anywhere else to go?” she whispered.
Does she think I’m homeless and just looking for somewhere to crash?
I scowled. “I have a home nearby with my brothers. But of course I’d rather live with you. You’remy wife.”
“Caspian,” she groaned, leaning her head back against the headrest. My breathing stuttered as she exposed her throat to me. I had to shift in my seat as my jeans grew uncomfortable.
I wasn’t a wolf shifter or a vampire, but I was still a predator at my core. Selkies might hunt fish, but the instincts were the same, whispering in the back of my head. I wanted to bury my nose against her neck and taste that ocean water scent.
“Juniper,” I purred.
She turned her head and fixed me with a gaze so full of longing, my heart leapt in my chest, affection and desire filling every corner of my body. She was so close to giving in to our fated mate bond, whether she knew it or not. I could feel it.
The ride share took us to the print shop around the corner. “I’ll be just a minute,” Juniper said to the driver.
He started to argue, but I pulled a fifty-dollar bill out of my wallet and passed it to the man. His mouth snapped shut.
Juniper glared at me, but I gave her an innocent smile. Scoffing, she strode into the print shop. Like her loyal puppy, I followed.
She rattled the order number off her email receipt, and the shop clerk’s eyes widened.
“Ms. Beck, I apologize. We usually just make flyers for real estate agents and stuff like that. We didn’t realize our folding machine was down, so they aren’t creased. At leastwe were able to staple them.”
He handed over a thick stack of very flat booklets.
“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Juniper muttered.
“It’s fine,” I said smoothly. “We can handle folding some booklets.”
The employee grimaced. “You’ll want something like a bone folder to get the creases tight.”
Smiling, I took the stack from Juniper. “I’m sure we will manage. Thank you.”
Beside me, my little witch relaxed. Her shoulders lowered, and her mouth softened.
She likes when I take control and fix things for her. Noted.
“We’d better get home and get started on these,” I said. “Is there anything else we need to pick up?”
