Page 19 of Israel

“The one—holy shit,” Kane said. “Your mate?”

Israel nodded.

Kane sat back in his chair, shaking his head. “I have to admit, I did not see that coming,” he said.

“You think I did?” Israel leaned on the table, head in his hands. “I walk in there, expecting a typical bullshit celebrity security job, and…bam. It hits me.”

Kane didn’t exactly need to know it was Ashley that hit him, while disarming him and knocking him on his ass. Kane might be his best friend, but he was also his boss.

“It was…” Despite his doubts, a tiny bit of excitement fizzed through Israel. The One. “I just knew.”

Kane’s eyes went softer for a moment, and Israel knew he was thinking about when he’d found Rachelle again.

“I know what you mean,” Kane said. “And I don’t want to be a downer, but…hell. A Nashville diva doesn’t exactly seem like your perfect match. Are you sure?”

Oh, yeah. He could still feel the pull, drawing him back to her, wanting to keep her happy and whole and safe.

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

“Um, does she know?” Kane asked cautiously.

“That’s the problem,” Israel said. “I don’t think so. I don’t know what kind of shifter she is—her family is completely paranoid about disclosure. So I don’t know if—whatever she is—if they feel the bond the way wolves do. Maybe it takes more time, or something? So I’m thinking maybe I need to, you know. Woo her, or some shit. I just don’t know how to do that.”

Romance wasn’t exactly his strong point. Hell, he didn’t even know how to talk to people most of the time. Especially women. How was he supposed to convince a woman like Ashley Silver to fall in love with him?

Kane snorted. “You’re asking me? Like I’m some expert on relationships. Up until Rachelle, my biggest concern during sex was how to keep Wolf from tearing the woman I was with apart and devouring the pieces.”

He got up, and Israel saw him walking away from the computer. Kane leaned out the window of the cabin and shouted, “Hey, Rafe! Need some help here! Bring Jace and Jesse.”

Oh, fuck. He did not just do that. Israel dropped his face into his hands. “Seriously, Kane?” he said through his fingers, as his friend sat down again. “Thanks for the humiliation. Just go ahead and paint ‘romantic loser’ on my forehead, why don’t you?”

“Shit, they already know,” Kane said. “Do you think they haven’t noticed you don’t talk to anyone and you only fuck drunk human girls?”

That somehow didn’t make him feel any better.

The guys piled into the cabin and gathered around Kane. “Security emergency?” Rafe asked. “Hi, Israel,” he added, with a finger-wave.

Israel just shook his head, face still in his hands.

“Romantic emergency,” Kane corrected. “Israel met his mate.”

“Get out!” Rafe high-fived the webcam. “Awesome.”

Kane went on, “The problem is, she doesn’t know she’s his mate, so now he needs to woo her. You guys are annoying losers, but you managed to snag mates, and he needs all the help he can get. Go.” He looked expectantly at Rafe.

“You’re starting with me?” Rafe laughed. “Bad plan. My wooing consisted of hanging around Terin’s cabin, annoying her and rummaging through her stuff uninvited, and getting caught in one of her people-hunting traps and hanging from the top of a tree by one ankle.”

He paused. “Although, that was sexier than it sounds.” His gaze grew soft and faraway. “Maybe because she was naked at the time…”

Kane rolled his eyes. “Next?” Everybody looked expectantly at Jesse, who gave Kane a sideways, slightly guilty glance before turning to face Israel.

“Umm,” he said. “Right. Do you want to hear about the part where I kind of accidentally seduced Sophia when I’d just finished negotiating her mating contract with Kane? Or the part where I got shot and she had to carry me miles through the forest, fight a psycho scientist who was trying to kill me, and then listen to me babble on about her boobs because the antidote to the poison he gave me made me stoned as shit?”

He paused thoughtfully, then nodded. “I think those were the highlights of our courtship. But hey, congrats on finding your mate. I’m sure you’ll do awesome.”

Israel sank down further in his chair. He was right the first time—he was completely fucked. “You guys are not helping even a little bit,” he said. “This was a mistake.”

“Probably,” said Jace, his alpha, turning Kane’s laptop to face him. “After two years of courting eligible female wolves and my wolf not wanting any of them, I let Emma pick me up in a truck stop bar, and then followed her across three states after she stole my motorcycle to get away from Alexander Grant’s hit squad. We got shot at a lot,” he finished. “It was an epic courtship. But I second the congrats.”