Page 84 of Stargazer

But I wasn’t an idiot. I could see which way the needle was leaning—the direction the scale was tipping—and it wasn’t in my favour.

Even though Griffin put up a tough guy bravado, pretended he didn’t have feelings and masked a lot of things with sarcasm, I knew that’s just what it was: a mask and an act. At least when it came to her. When it came to her, he’d love her fiercely.

It was blatantly obvious in the way he even moved around her. Like she was the centre of gravity for him.

Yet it was subtle—their pull towards one another. They weren’t actively flaunting it in my face. And I knew Vee was doing everything in her power to dim it around me.

But it was there. I could see it.

They had a smoothness to the way they worked together; like a cohesive unit. As if they’d known each other for years.

Even when I wasn’t actively watching, I could sense it. Feel it.

As much as I hated it, the guy was charming, brave, tough and protective. But he was also sensitive and emotional and caring—a side that I was sure not many people saw.

He was like that for her.

I knew she questioned it, but it was clear to the rest of us.

Even so, it would still rip my heart out when she made that final decision.

I had a feeling I’d need to slowly start unravelling that heart of mine from hers.

CHAPTER 30

VENUS

Iwas having one of those days. Those days where no one and nothing could get through the emotionally unavailable stupor I was in. I was drained, mentally and physically. And I woke up irritable and unapproachable, which was clear to everyone that currently occupied the Stone household from the moment I descended the stairs.

One look at my face told Celeste and my mother not to bother me. They’d seen me in this state before. Being a house full of women, we basically took turns when it came to our moods.

With everything that was going on, I couldn’t pinpoint the exact source of my sadness and unease. Nor my irritation.

I was likely PMSing.

Whatever the reason, I was illogically mad this morning. I couldn’t remember if it was a dream—or nightmare—that had triggered the mood, or if it was just plain and simply the fact that our life was still in a state of limbo.

There was no progression. With anything.

River and I had been spending more and more time together, and while everything felt great when I was with him, I kept coming home feeling somewhat melancholy. After weeks of it, it was taking its toll.

Things with Griffin … I didn’t know what was happening with Griffin. I had weirdly always found him a strong support system and with this time and proximity, that was only growing. I almost depended on his unwavering presence.

We flirted. He was always there for me. But I knew he was leaving the ball in my court.

I didn’t want the stupid ball.

And frankly, I was no closer to making a decision.

Neither were we any closer to figuring out the motive behind the rogue army. And the Harvest Moon was just over a week away.

We knew that a handful of newly turned wolves were being kept as shifters, Amelia included, and if the last full moon was anything to go by, that gave us the advantage we needed to keep the rogues at bay from turning any more humans … at least in our region and the surrounding packs. And thankfully, the pack was quite successful in reaching others and growing our support network, slowly working their way across the country. The wolves had been rotating in and out of Saint Claire for months now and their efforts had been paying off. Those packs were all on high alert now and when this inevitable final battle happened, they’d be ready to aid us when we called. So at least that was going right.

But we still didn’t know the why—why any of this was happening in the first place.

If I had to take a guess, I’d say all of that combined was what put me in a foul mood. One that Griffin hadn’t really had the privilege of experiencing firsthand yet and in such close proximity. But staying with us, it was almost inevitable that he’d be in my firing range.

“Morning,” I grumbled as I entered the kitchen.

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