Page 16 of Business or Pleasure

There’s unusual, and then there’s this. And she wouldn’t want me to tell you this.

HUX

If you’re messing with me, Alice, it isn’t funny. I get enough of that from Caleb, and it’s not exactly my favorite way to spend my time.

ALICE

I’m serious. She’s not just an experiment you can run again and again until you get the results you want. She’s my best friend.

HUX

I know that. And you have to believe that I care about her.

ALICE

I—I do. God, I’m going to regret this...

Alice walks to the edge of the room, glances out the windows, and takes a deep breath.

That night you were in the dining hall and she suddenly had to run out? And you didn’t hear from her for two days?

HUX

I thought she was late to class. An evening class, she said later, one with a lot of homework.

ALICE

Or when her clothes were covered in fur and you asked if she had a dog, and she couldn’t give you a straight answer? Or when she got sick during the full moon? Or those scratches on her neck?

HUX

There has to be a rational explanation for—

ALICE

She’s a werewolf, Hux.

HUX

And how the hell do you know that?

Alice whirls around, eyes flashing.

ALICE

Because I am, too.

chapter

five

This has to be a mix-up. A mistake. The wrong table.

But his manager is getting to his feet, giving me a warm smile. “Chandler Cohen?” he asks, and somewhat mechanically, I feel myself nod.

Drew/Finnegan finally glances up, and when his gaze meets mine, he spills one of the restaurant’s signature juices down the front of his unfortunately white shirt. Something with beets, from the look of it.

“Careful there!” his manager says, flagging down a server. “Could we get some more napkins?”

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