Our fingers brushed again as he took it, lighter this time but no less noticeable. He turned slightly away as he typed, curls falling forward again.
I found myself watching his hands. He had long steady fingers. There was small ink smudge near the side of his index finger. A tattoo? A mark from a pen?
I wondered, briefly and completely out of nowhere, what it would feel like to hold that hand again. Not by accident or to prevent him from leaving.
Maybe we could hold hands at this wedding. It would sell the ‘pretend boyfriends’ thing better. My brain caught up to that thought about three seconds later. Wait. What was I thinking?
My wolf, traitor that it was, was very amused. I dragged a hand down my face.
Seth handed the phone back. “There.”
I glanced at the new contact, then back up at him.
“Text me the details.”
“I will,” he said quickly. “Yeah. I will. Thank you. Seriously.”
“You’ve said that,” I pointed out.
“I know, I just…” Seth cut himself off, huffing out a small laugh. “Thanks.”
Before I could respond, a voice called out from behind the counter. “Seth! I need you back here!”
He glanced over his shoulder, then back at me.
“I should get back to work,” he said.
“Yeah,” I said. “No problem.”
“Alright then,” Seth said.
He lingered for half a second, like he might say something else, then turned and headed back behind the counter. I watched him go.
He slipped right back into that familiar role, movements smooth, focused.
But there was a subtle difference now. It was as if I’d seen something I wasn’t supposed to see, and now I couldn’t unsee it.
I picked up my drink and took a slow sip. My wolf was still very pleased with itself, and I ignored him. Eventually, I stood, tossing the empty cup into the bin on my way out.
The café had filled up while we were talking. More people had come in, more noise, the low hum of conversation rising.
At the door, I paused for a second, then I glanced back. Seth looked up at the same time, like he’d felt it. Our eyes met across the room.
And because apparently I had lost all sense of self-preservation somewhere between the hand-grabbing and the agreeing-too-fast, I winked.
I actually winked at him. His expression went completely blank. Seth seemed stumped, completely frozen, as if his brain had just hit a loading screen.
I immediately regretted the silly winking.
“Yep,” I muttered to myself, pushing the door open. “That was foolish.”
I stepped out into the evening air, letting the door swing shut behind me before I could do anything else questionable. The walk back to my truck felt longer than it should’ve.
I unlocked it, climbed in, and sat there for a moment, hands resting on the wheel.
“Well,” I said. My wolf hummed, deeply satisfied. “Don’t start.”
I leaned my head back against the seat and stared up at the ceiling. Why had I said yes? Because Seth was attractive? That was part of it apparently.
