Page 77 of Switched

Then, it happens. The minute hand takes its first move past the hour, and the uncanny certainty that our true mate is on our doorstep takes me over.

I move out of the kitchen, heading past the lounge where Rueben and Scout are talking, and toward the front door. I see her shadow through the glass panels at the side of the door right before she rings the bell.

Handle within grasp, I pause and turn to see Rueben peering out of the lounge doorway.

“Sit down,” I instruct him quietly.

He slinks back into the room.

I turn to the door, and I hesitate.

If there’s one thing I’ve realized since yesterday, it’s that we might not have a whole week to help us convince Scarlett we’re the right pack for her. We need to take every minute as it comes. There’s no guarantee that she won’t bolt if something happens that freaks her out.

All we’ve done for the last three years is chase her.

I don’t want to have to keep doing that.

I open the door, and she raises an eyebrow.

She’s less made up than usual. There’s no red paint on her lips, no shine on her cheeks.

In fact, I don’t think she’s wearing makeup at all, and she’s more stunning than I’ve ever seen her.

“Hey,” she says, giving me a ghost of a smile. “Your cleaning lady’s here.”

She’s wearing blue today, and something about the color seems to really suit her.

Strange, considering red tones are usually what she prefers to wear.

“Nice shirt,” I tell her as I open the door wider to let her inside.

She glances down and shrugs. “It’s okay.”

“It’s a nice color,” I find myself muttering.

I haven’t felt this nervous around anyone since high school.

At least back then I had the excuse of being a clueless teenager.

As a thirty-year-old Alpha, I can’t believe I’m in this situation.

She steps inside and I close the door, noticing her sneakers are blue today, too.

“Do you want me to start with the kitchen again?” she asks, as she takes her purse off her shoulder.

“Uh …” I trail off, unprepared for the question.

“Rueben mentioned his room might need vacuumed.”

“Oh, did he? Well, his room is his own area to keep clean, so you don’t need to worry about that.”

She nods slowly. “Then, I guess I’ll get started scrubbing the shine off of everything in the kitchen.”

“Do you want something to eat first? We had breakfast a while ago, but it’s no trouble to make something …”

“That’s okay,” she says quickly. “I had something before I left the house.”

She moves past me, and Rueben appears at the lounge doorway.

---